Gunsmoke and Black Roses
by Count Le MadPhantom
Summary: The Sequel to A Dish Best Served Cold! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE FIRST ONE! YOU WILL JUST BE CONFUSED! A military expirement goes awry, and a 'super soldier' escapes, taking refuge with the Titans... eventual OCxBlackfire,OCxJinx,RobxStar,BBxTr
1. Prologue

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans are not my personal property; I'm just borrowing them for this here fic… for no profit, of course._

**_(A/N: This fic is a direct sequel to my other fic, A Dish Best Served Cold. If you haven't read it, you should, because without it, this one simply won't make any sense to you whatsoever…you have been warned. If you HAVE read my other fic, then proceed on, and thanks for taking an interest in my fics… it means a lot. –The Mad Phantom…)_**

**_Gunsmoke and Black Roses… the Prologue…_**

**12:00 PM, The Jump City Military Base**

A tall elderly man's footsteps echo around a dimly lit corridor. He is neatly dressed in a military outfit with a number of badges and 5 stars on the shoulder of his uniform… a five star general, a very high rank. The man's name is General Randall Kingsley.

He walks down the corridor of the military base… it's late, so other than a few patrolling guards, he sees no one on his way to his destination. The mood of the place is downright creepy… the military man, despite his years of combat experience, found himself getting nervous in the night… he speeds up his pace a little.

Finally, he reaches a set of stairs going downward for countless floors… with an elevator right next to it. Getting on in years, the General opts to take the elevator.

With the push of the call button, he waits a moment for the elevator to come down. Shortly, he begins to hear a muffled, high-pitched buzz, tipping the observant general off that it was coming.

With a soft grating, the old metal doors open up as General Kingsley steps inside. The atmosphere inside the elevator is just as foreboding as the corridor… it was cramped, and the only light source came from a small, fluorescent bulb on the ceiling, making it seem artificially bright… a fake light covering the lurking darkness underneath.

The old General sighs heavily and pushes a small, round button reading **_'20 B'_**, or **_'Twentieth Basement Floor.'_**

With a loud, metallic screech, the elevator sets off on it's age old rounds once again. General Kingsley shifts uncomfortably… he wonders when this rickety thing passed it's last safety inspection…

After roughly five minutes of tense, solitary waiting, there is a slow lurch, and the aging doors ground open again… the general steps out and begins striding briskly down another corridor much like the last… except, with a more neglected appearance, as if the subterranean place was rarely graced by human presence.

Several minutes of walking ensue, and the general makes his way down hallways and rooms, coming down to a flight of steps… he walks down and winds up at a shining metallic door, with a hi-tech looking terminal complete with a key-slot, flashing lights, and a small screen beside the door, mounted to the wall… all this seemed bizarrely out of place in the unkempt basements…

The old General rummages around in his coat pocket for a brief moment, muttering annoyed as he did so…

"**Ah**! _There's_ the little bugger…" he mutters, as he picks a small, rectangular, yellow-and-red card key from his pocket.

With one, quick, fluid motion, General Kingsley swipes the card key through the terminal… a few seconds pass, and the screen lights up with the bold message, **'ACCESS GRANTED.'**

Then, the shining door slid quickly and noiselessly open… not groaning and grating as the other doors had… perhaps this one is… _newer_…

The General pocketed the small card key and walked through the door… he walked into a room that absolutely shone as if freshly washed and swept.

Immediately, he turns a corner… and comes face-to-face with a pale man in a white lab coat and large, round, mirror-like glasses.

"General." The man chuckles in a soft, sly sort of voice.

"Professor." Kingsley replies promptly.

The man in the laboratory coat is Professor Karl Wagner… the head scientist for weapons and genetics research and development at the Jump City military base.

They begin walking down a nearby hall and come to a room full of strange experimental equipment, dangerous-looking surgical supplies, and vials of what looked like blood, chemicals, and other strange fluids. Several metal hospital beds on wheels are scattered about the room, some of them with drips and heart monitors nearby…

On the rear wall of the room, there was… a tube. A very large tube, one that you could easily fit two or three people inside of. A metal shutter covers the front.

"Well… I take it the research is going well?" The General asks, taking out a small handkerchief out of his pocket and wiping his brow.

"Yes… I can personally assure you, General. We've just finished the prototype, and our initial test results are very impressive. It's limb strength is phenomenal… 15 times that of an average marine. It's top running speed is roughly 70 MpH. We've also taken the liberty of creating an advanced arsenal for it's use." Prof. Wagner's voice is cold, calculating, yet somehow pleased at the same time. "The higher-ups have been putting a lot of funding into our little… _project_, here… and now, their investment has paid off.

The General blinks for a moment, and then sits down on a nearby metal folding-chair with a heavy sigh.

"You know… this is… extreme business we're dealing with isn't it? I mean, I'm no science-man m'self… but as far as I know, no one's ever done this have they? Created a living, breathing being from a few cells in a test tube?" General Kingsley sounded somewhat hesitant.

"If you want to call it that." The professor said with an indifferent shrug. "Living, yes. Unique, or significant, no. It is a synthetic construct… nothing more."

"Right, right…" the General says with a nod.

"If you wish… I could show you. It is ready, after all." The prof. offered.

"Sure… my bosses back at HQ would be eager to know what this little 'super-soldier' of yours looks like… what they've been pourin' so much money into." General Kingsley chuckled.

Prof. Wagner walks slowly over to the large tube, and presses a large button on the side… causing the thick, metal shutter to flick open.

The General gasped out loud as a dim, red light flooded the room.

There, in the tube and suspended in some sort of reddish chemical or liquid… was a boy. He could be hardly older than sixteen or seventeen. His brown hair was short and spiked upwards on his head. He wore a white, sleeveless muscle-shirt with a pair of blue-denim overalls over it. Over these, he wore a black-leather jacket with the collar turned up. On his feet was a pair of brown-leather, pointed-toe cowboy boots.

"What the--? THIS is the super soldier? He's only a boy!" the General protested, mouth agape.

"It. Not he." Wagner corrected simply.

"Fine, **_it_**!" Snapped Kingsley. "That doesn't change the fact that it's still just a kid!"

"Appearances can be deceiving, General." Wagner grunted. "That _'kid'_ is strong enough to bench press a platoon of Green Berets."

"Are you trying to—" the general was cut off by what he saw behind the professor.

_The boy in the tank's eyes were open._

"What in the name of—" again, the general was cut off.

The glass of the tank was suddenly shattered by the boy's fist, before either of them could react. The boy leapt out, dripping with red liquid, and grabbed the general by the throat.

"Sorry, **_sir_**…" he hissed with heavy sarcasm. "… But I ain't your damn science-fair-project anymore."

With a disgusting '**snap**!', he twisted the general's neck all the way around, killing him instantly. Then, in front of the numb-with-shock Wagner, he dashed out the door and into the dark military base.

"_Mother of God_… _it's **loose**_..." The scientist whispered hoarsely, just before running over to the wall and activating an alarm.

As the alarm began blaring all throughout the base, the young boy from earlier was running at incredible speed through the dark halls… though incredibly lost.

He panted heavily and blindly turned corner after corner, beginning to panic… he just wanted to get the Hell out of here…

After a few minutes of running, he turned another corner… to find himself face-to-face with three armed guards.

"Stop! Put your hands in the air!" One of them yelled as they raised their machine guns.

"Grr… the **Hell** I am…" muttered the boy.

The soldiers opened fire, but the boy jumped back and did a barrel roll on the ground into another hallway… where he took refuge in a small storage room.

The boy fell to his knees and panted for a minute… until he heard the scuffle of army boots outside the door.

"Oh _no_…" he groaned, looking desperately around for some means of defense… and that's when he spotted it.

A large crate sat on a shelf with the label: **'EXPEREMENTAL SUPER-SOLDIER GEAR; DO NOT TOUCH'**

He jogged over and immediately ripped the top off the crate… and gasped at what he found…

A sawed-off, **four** barreled shotgun… a pair of **.44** magnum, six-shooter revolvers… and there, under these odd firearms… a chainsaw.

The body of the saw was brown, and the 60" blade was curved slightly, not like a normal chainsaw. It was almost shaped like a scythe… sleek, silver exhaust pipes slid along the sides and bent upward at a sharp angle, and on the left side was a small ventilation grate with the crank cord just above that.

Looking in awe at his new ordinance, the boy grinned and grabbed the shotgun, putting it in a gun-holster that had also been in the crate and strapped it to his back. He got the revolvers and got the holsters that had been with them, putting them on the left side of his waist. Finally, the saw had come with a strong, steel clasp that would attach to the belt loops on his overalls, and hold the saw on his waist.

Next, he grabbed a large, camouflage colored military backpack from another shelf and filled it to the brim with all the shotgun shells and bullets he could find in the storage room, tossing in a couple medical kits for good measure.

"All right… let's see 'em come in here now… let's just see if I don't blow their Asses to kingdom come…" He muttered, cocking his quad-barreled shotgun and aiming it at the doorway.

Back outside, the security guards were looking for the escapee.

"There's only one room we haven't checked… the storage room." One said, reloading his machine gun.

"Then that's where it's gotta be." Another grunted.

Then, they heard something that confirmed their theory…

'_Vroom… Vra-Vra Vroom… Vrreeeeeeeeeeee!'_

A muffled cranking noise coming from the storage room…

When the soldiers began to approach the doorway, the door was abruptly kicked out of it's frame by a cowboy boot.

There stood the boy, loaded quad-barreled shotgun in one hand and cranked chainsaw in the other…

The soldiers stared in amazement and fright for a moment, before the boy spoke.

"Alright… who wants some?"

The lead soldier immediately shouted a command: "**_FIRE_**!"

And they did. They let fly with bullets, but the boy dodged and returned fire with the shotgun, blowing the guy away.

With a yell, the boy charged the soldiers, who were still firing… and sliced the fronts of their machine guns off with the saw.

Left standing dumbstruck with destroyed guns, they stood stupidly for a moment before breaking into a run and running away from the boy, who just smiled and holstered his shotgun and clasped his chainsaw back to his overalls… then, he pulled the pair of revolvers up…

As the soldiers retreated, he raised the revolvers and took careful aim…

A dozen, loud bangs rang out, and the soldiers fell to the ground dead, and the boy stood there blowing smoke away from the barrels of his twin revolvers.

Staying silent, the boy holstered the revolvers, but then… he screamed in pain as he was shot from behind.

He turned around clutching a small tranquilizer dart protruding from his shoulder…

There in the distance stood Prof. Wagner with a tranquilizer rifle.

The boy's eyes went wide as he realized he had to get out of there before he lost consciousness from the tranquilizer.

Flipping the scientist the bird, he ran back and soon found the elevator, going in and pressing the 'top floor' button.

Wagner pulled a radio out of his lab coat pocket and spoke…

"I hit him with the maximum strength tranquilizer… he won't get far."

**_An hour later, at Titan's Tower…_**

Sub-Zero was in the kitchen, eating ice cream… an odd activity for this time of night, but hey, when you can't sleep and are hungry, what else you gonna do?

"Ahhh, Vanilla! Hits the spot…" Zero sighed. Ever since Jinx had introduced ice cream to him, he had become rather partial to the stuff.

It had been exactly two months since the whole ordeal in Norblitz… and his relationship with Jinx had only gotten better and better. They now went out on a date usually once or twice a week, maybe more.

Sub-Zero was interrupted from his thoughts when he heard a sound coming from downstairs.

He walked down to the entrance of the tower and realized the noise he had been hearing had been knocking on the door…

"Huh? Wait, it's like… 1:00 in the morning, who wants in?" Zero asked no one in particular, his red eyes going wide in surprise.

Against his better judgment, the ice knight opened the door… and got a big surprise.

There stood a boy of about seventeen with a four barreled shotgun and camouflage backpack on his back and two revolvers and a chainsaw attached to the waist of his overalls.

"_P-Please… H-Help… Me…_." The boy moaned in a weak voice… right before collapsing upon the floor unconscious.

**Well, my second OC is now officially introduced. We'll find out his name in the next chapter, and find out what the Titans have been doing the past two months…**

_**Please Read and Review,**_

**_The Mad Phantom…_**


	2. Chapter One

_Disclaimer: I still don't own the Teen Titans…_

_**Gunsmoke**__**and Black Roses… Chapter One**_

_'Gentlemen… we have here: a new breed of soldier.'_

A… soldier?

_'Fifteen times normal limb strength…'_

I'm _that_ strong?

_'It's cognitive functions read normal…'_

**It**? I'm… an **it**?

_'The prototype is now complete…'_

So… I'm only a _prototype_…

_'Alive, yes. Unique or significant, no.'_

No… I **AM**…. I _know_ I am… you're wrong…

A young, brown-haired boy in overalls and a black leather jacket awoke sweating and gasping… he looked around frantically, cutting his eyes all around his unfamiliar surroundings.

He was on a white, infirmary bed in Titan's Tower… on a small table next to his bed was his gear, all there and loaded.

He looks back and forth between his gear and the room… at first, he can't remember how or why he got here…

Then, he remembered everything. He was a prototype **_'super-soldier.'_** But he was only a prototype… once they were sure he worked properly and lived up to their expectations, they were simply going to dispose of him, like he was just some useless, broken tool.

What they hadn't counted on… was their little 'secret weapon' developing thoughts and a free will of his own.

He hadn't wanted to die… he wanted to live. And he was tired of being an 'it.' A tool, a weapon… he wanted to be a _person_, like everyone else had been… was that too much to ask for?

So he'd gotten out… and capped a few of those military bastards on his way out the door… and he'd taken his equipment with him.

He had known he didn't have much time before Wagner's tranquilizer took it's effect. So, he had gone to the biggest building he could find, thinking he could hide there… and here he was…

"Well… I see you're awake." A voice said from the shadows.

The boy gasped and whipped around… and there stood a guy with white robes, blue crystal armor, a sword at his side, a shield, and red eyes and white hair… whom we already know to be Sub-Zero.

"I guess those tranquilizers wore off, eh?" Zero chuckled. "You were pretty drugged up with the stuff when you got here."

The boy calmed himself somewhat when he realized Zero wasn't hostile.

"Who are you? Where am I?" he groaned.

"Me? The name's Sub-Zero… but you can just refer to me as 'Zero' for short, if you like… and you're at Titan's Tower."

"Titan's… Tower?" he whispered, blinking.

"Right." Zero nodded. "And what's your name, anyway?"

The boy was silent… he **HAD** no name… did he?

"… It." He said simply.

"_'It_?' Your name can't be '_It'_!" Zero protested. "That's just strange…"

"Or… maybe…. _Prototype_?" The boy offered, thinking this might work. "I'm not… really sure…"

"_Pro_—wait a minute… are you telling me you don't even know your own **_name_**?" the knight demanded in disbelief.

"I… I don't really… have a name." He said simply.

Zero blinked and ran a hand through his snowy hair. "Well… I guess… we'll just have to make one up, huh?"

The boy shrugged and remained silent.

Sub-Zero looked over at the boy's gear… a shotgun with four barrels, a pair of old-style revolvers… and a chainsaw with a custom blade… he tried to think of a name that would fit the boy… then, it hit him. What do a shotgun, a pair of pistols, and a chainsaw have in common? They all let off… smoke.

"**AHA**! Got it! How about…" Zero paused for dramatic effect. "… _Smoke_?"

The boy blinked… and for the first time in his short life, he genuinely smiled. "Smoke?…. I…. I like it…."

"Great! Smoke it is, then… " Zero said with a clap of his gloved hands. "Now, if you're feeling up to it… I'll introduce you to my friends… they're awake by now, I'm sure."

The newly named Smoke stared. "By now? How long have I been knocked out?"

"Oh, about nine hours…" Zero answered. "That tranquilizer had quite a kick. Who shot you anyway?" the young knight looked genuinely concerned.

"Well… it's a long story… a **_VERY_** long story… but to be brief, I'm being pursued…" Smoke explained.

Zero looked at him with concern and curiosity. "Pursued? By who?"

"The military. Let's just say… I belong to them… and they want me back." The young gunman explained sadly.

"_Belong_ to them? You can't _belong_ to anybody. That's slavery, and it's wrong." Zero insisted simply.

Smoke just shrugged again.

"Say… if you… do you have a place to stay?" The knight asked, getting an idea.

Smoke looked up, perplexed. "Uh… no…. not really…" he answered honestly; he really didn't.

"Great! You can stay with us! For a while at least…" Zero said with a lopsided grin, punching his palm. "Of course, I'll have to make sure with Robin, but I'm sure he'll think it's a splendid idea."

"Uhhh…. No…. really… you don't have to…" Smoke tried to protest nervously, but Zero cut him off.

"**Nonsense**! I can't just leave you out without a place to stay." The knight said firmly.

"But… don't you _get_ it? If I stay here, neither of us would be safe. If they came for me…" Smoke began protesting, but was cut off again.

"I assure you, _Monsieur_… I'm not helpless; neither are my friends. And from the looks of things…" Zero paused and looked over at the small arsenal on the table. "… Neither are _you_."

"Well… I'm just a bit of a marksman, that's all." The boy said… of course, from the way he was gunning down those guards earlier, we all know he's just being modest.

"The point is…" Zero continued, "… You are more than welcome to stay, if Robin and the others agree."

"Robin… who's Robin?" Smoke asked.

"Well, Robin's kind of the boss around here. The Fearless Leader." Zero explained. "If you'll wait here in the infirmary, I'll go get him, and the others, and I'll introduce you!"

Smoke sighed loudly, seeing he simply couldn't win an argument with the snowy-haired youth. "Well… if you really think so…. Then go for it, I guess…"

_**Ten Minutes Later:**_

Beast Boy and Cyborg were currently in the kitchen whipping up some breakfast.

"Hey B.Boy… which do you think: waffles… or eggs?" The bionic teen asked thoughtfully.

"Hmm…. Waffles, definitely." B.B. replied. "Hey Cy… have you seen the soy milk? I can't find it…"

"I threw it out. It went bad yesterday." Cy explained.

"_WHAT_? And you didn't tell me?" The shape shifter demanded.

"Relax… we'll buy you some more the next time we go shopping'" Cy reassured.

The pair was interrupted from their conversation when a yawning Tamaranean walked into the room.

"Glorious morning my friends! Are we to feast on the cakes of the pan this morning as we did yesterday?" Starfire bubbled, referring to the pancakes they'd had yesterday for breakfast.

"Nope… waffles." Cy said, yawning. For the life of him, he couldn't see how on Earth the alien girl could be so perky in the morning…

A few minutes later, Robin and Raven walked in, about six minutes apart from each other.

And a few minutes after that, Jinx came in last, yawning widely.

"… (Yawn)… G'morning guys…. " She yawned. Then, the first thing out of her mouth, "Is Zero up yet?"

"I dunno… we haven't seen him." Robin said shrugging, helping Cy with the waffle batter.

"Oh, yeah…. I'm up." Zero said, walking into the kitchen.

"**Zero**!" Jinx squealed and ran over to give him a hug. "Good morning, sweetie."

"Mornin', darling…" The knight said, hugging the pink haired girl back, and giving her an affectionate peck on the cheek. "What's for breakfast, anyway?" Zero finished, turning to Cyborg.

"Waffles." Cy replied, putting the first of the batter into his large waffle iron. "And don't you guys have a better place to do that than in the kitchen?" He added, though he was just joking.

Sub-Zero didn't respond… but he just looked intently at the waffle iron.

"Hey, Cy… how long before those things are ready… ten or fifteen minutes?" Zero asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, I guess that's about right." The mechanical man responded.

"Good… I need you guys to do something for me, if you've got time… It can wait 'till after breakfast, but still… I'd like to do it now." Sub-Zero explained, looking at his friends pleadingly.

"Uh… what do you need to do?" Robin asked hesitantly.

"Just come with me down to the infirmary for a couple minutes… you'll see why."

_**Back in the Infirmary…**_

Smoke was lying on his side, his guns, backpack, and saw back on him. For some reason, he actually felt more comfortable with them on… even though most people would find such weapons awkward or restrictive.

He sighed heavily… where'd that stiff with the sword go, anyway? He said he'd be right back with his friends…

_Friends_… heh.

They welcomed him now… **hopefully**, anyway… but if he let on for a moment what he was… they'd have him out in an instant.

Smoke looked intently at his hand. It looked… perfectly normal… but he knew that it wasn't. Normal people have naturally occurring hands… his had been **_built_** to specific standards… just as the rest of him had. He was a… not a machine; that wasn't the right word. There was nothing mechanical about him; he knew that. But he was… **_fake_**. He was an artificial person, built from a few, super-enhanced cells in a damn test tube…

He was a monster. A freak. An accident that should have never happened…

Smoke was interrupted from his angst-filled reverie by the sound of footsteps coming toward the infirmary… he gulped, and grabbed the curtain around his white cot and pulled it closed, hiding himself… if only momentarily. He couldn't look at them…

"So why are we down here anyway, Zero?" Smoke heard a female voice say. It was highly feminine, and seemed almost like a purr.

"Oh, you'll see Jinx…" Smoke recognized _this_ voice… it was the swordsman with white hair who'd taken him in.

"It had better be good, dude… I'm hungry, and those waffles aren't going to eat themselves!" Another voice, male, but high-pitched and somewhat whiny.

"Hush, Beast Boy… I'm sure Zero's got some good reason for bringing us down here…" This voice was female, but monotone and gravelly…

"She's right… but why the infirmary, bro? You didn't decide to do a little spring cleaning while we were asleep, did you?" A deep, masculine voice.

"Oh, Friend Zero, I can no longer contain my curiosity! What is the surprise you have been leading us to?" This voice a girl's, too; twittering and bubbly.

"Just relax, guys… He'll tell us when he's good and ready." This voice was baritone and authoritarian; it sounded like a young man.

Finally, Smoke heard the footsteps getting very close to him…. And Sub-Zero told his companions, "Wait here…"

Then, the curtain opened up. There stood Sub-Zero, grinning and looking at the young gunman expectantly.

"Well… you ready?" He chuckled.

Smoke just took a deep breath and nodded. Making sure his arsenal was on right; he stood up and followed Zero…

Meanwhile, the Titans were waiting in the front room of the infirmary when Zero stepped through the doorway.

"Well, you guys are wondering why I brought you here, hm? Truth be told… I've got someone I'd like to introduce to you guys…" The knight grinned good-naturedly and waved a hand to the doorway. "Friends… Titans…. Countrymen…. I'm pleased to present… Smoke."

After a moment of silence, a boy edged nervously out the door and stood next to Zero. His dark brown hair was spiky, he wore a white muscle shirt and overalls, a black leather jacket with collar turned up and a camo backpack… not to mention, two revolvers and a chainsaw at his hip, and a quadruple barreled shotgun on his back. His golden hazel colored eyes darted back and forth between Zero and the Titans.

In response to his friends stunned looks, Zero smiled and explained. "This fellow… came to us in the dead of night, while you guys were asleep… thank goodness, I was awake because…"

Jinx cut him off. "Wait a minute… you weren't eating Ice Cream again, were you?" the sorceress demanded.

"Uh… well… I, uh…." It was Sub-Zero's turn to look nervous.

"What have I told you about that? It's not good for you!" Jinx hissed angrily, but when she saw Zero cower at her anger, she sniffled and apologized. "I'm sorry… anyway, what were saying, sweetie?"

"I, uh… right. Smoke here, was in need of a place to stay last night, so… I took the liberty of letting him use an infirmary bed." Zero finished.

Starfire was the first to react. Smoke yelped, startled, when Star flew over and looked him dead in the face.

"Your name is Smoke? How did you get here? What is your favorite color? What is your favorite food? Do you wish to be my friend?" She asked her trademark 'Star's-new-friend questions' in rapid succession.

"_Uh_, well, I… I ran at first, when the tranquilizer kicked in I … stumbled. I guess I like… uh… I'm not sure… " He looked at his clothes, and was struck by the color of his backpack. He pointed to it.

"This color, I guess… camouflage. I don't really have a favorite food… I could never taste my food at the military base anyway… it came in through a needle. And… I… I guess I'd like to be your friend, if you don't mind…"

"Wait… _military base_? You're a soldier? Is that why you got enough guns there to take on the Russian army?" Cy chuckled. "And what's with the chainsaw? I've never seen one that long… or with a curved blade like that…." He finished curiously.

Smoke smiled for a second and unhooked his saw from his overalls. He held it up for the Titans to look at, silvery exhaust pipes, brown handle and body, and long, curved blade all showing clearly.

"This… is a specially customized, indestructible, gasoline powered chainsaw. It was designed specifically for me." Smoke explained. "And so were… _these_."

He hooked the saw back to his waist and removed his pistols…

"Now _these_ little numbers… are genuine, **_.44_** magnum, six-shot revolvers… compact, sturdy, easy to use, and packin' enough punch for guaranteed, one-hit-kills. And last…"

He put the revolvers back in the holsters on the left side of his hip. He pulled the souped-up shotgun out of his large, back-holster.

"_This_ sweet baby, is a top secret, quadruple barreled, sawn off, **10 gauge**… effectively delivers **4 times** the buckshot, with minimal recoil. A hair trigger also comes standard." Smoke added, grinning proudly. "That's right… **_THE_** shotgun of choice… military top-of-the-line."

"Uh… Well then… I wasn't really expecting all that info…" Cy blinked. "But thanks for sharing…. Wait, did you say 'Top-Secret'? What are you, some kind of secret agent?" he asked.

"Um, well… not exactly…" he stuttered. He couldn't tell them… _could_ he? Would they hate him or fear him? No… just from looking at them, he could tell that these guys weren't exactly 'normal' themselves. _Hell_, that short guy in the corner was **GREEN**.

"Well… look, if you really want to know… it's a long story." Smoke warned.

Sub-Zero stepped up from behind Cyborg.

"Don't worry… we've got all the time in the world."

_**Eight Minutes Later, Back at the Breakfast Table in the Kitchen…**_

"So, basically, what you're telling us is… you're a genetically engineered gunman, with superhuman strength and speed, as well as enhanced reflexes and coordination… the first of a line of new, 'Super-Soldiers?' And those are stolen, experimental weapons you've got?" Robin asked their new 'guest' doubtfully.

"Hey, they ain't stolen! They were built for me in the first place, right? I was just takin' back what was mine." Smoke corrected.

The Boy Wonder still had his doubts… until Raven leaned over and whispered into his ear.

"He's not lying… I read his mind. He's telling the truth." She whispered, too soft for anyone but Robin to hear.

"Well… do you think we can trust him?" Robin asked her.

"I don't see why not. He's not hostile toward us." Raven answered with a shrug.

Smoke interrupted their private conversation.

"So… I don't think I caught your names…?" he asked.

"Right… well, I'm Robin…." The Boy Wonder explained. He began to introduce the others.

"I think you've already met Sub-Zero…." He motioned toward the Knight, and then towards a pale-gray-skinned young girl in black clothes with cotton-candy pink hair in two, bull-horn shaped pigtails. "… that's Jinx…" he motioned toward the Cybernetic teen Smoke had been showing his gear to… "That's Cyborg…" … then to the green guy. "And that's Beast Boy."

Robin was interrupted when Starfire decided to introduce herself.

"Yes, and I am Starfire!" she bubbled cheerfully. "We are pleased to have you over for the break of the fast, New Friend Smoke!"

"Yeah… that's Star." Robin said. "And…. That's Raven." He pointed at a short, dour-looking girl who also had gray skin, though a little darker than Jinx's… she was wearing a blue cloak.

"Pleased to meet you." Raven said… although she said it in a low, deadpan voice that almost made the remark seem comical.

"Yeah, right back at ya, Raven." He said, grinning.

"So, are you like… a runaway, or what?" Beast Boy asked.

"I… I guess… I think they'll be looking for me, soon enough." Smoke sighed. "It's not safe for any of you if I stay here… I should get going pretty soon…"

Cyborg shook his head "You actually think those army rejects would stand a chance against us?"

"Well… I'm…" Smoke wasn't sure what to say. "They're pretty heavily armed…"

"So are we… maybe, after breakfast… we should show you just what we can do." B.B. said with a self-satisfied smirk.

"Ooooh, yes! And you can show us your skills with firearms!" Star added, beaming.

"Uh… _how_, exactly?" Smoke asked, hesitantly.

_**At the Obstacle Course…**_

Robin stood at a control terminal, ready to switch on the obstacle course out behind the Tower.

"Okay, Zero… you're up first." He informed the knight, who chuckled and turned to Jinx.

"Well, sweet… how about a good luck kiss?" He asked with a grin.

"Of course…" Jinx purred, leaning up and giving him a peck on the cheek "… not that you need it."

Satisfied, Sub-Zero stepped up to the starting point, and drew both Eviglasere and Snevakt… his sword and shield.

Robin counted down. "3… 2… 1… **_GO_**!"

With the press of the button, mechanical turrets popped up out of the dirt and opened automatic laser fire on the young warrior.

"Heheheh… I think you guys need to chill out…" Zero joked, sending a flurry of freezing wind and snow… the turrets were frozen solid and rendered harmless.

The knight made his way through the rest of the course, freezing or slicing anything that got in his way, blocking fire with his shield. Soon, he crossed the finish line and everybody clapped and cheered.

"Nice going Zero! Now…" Robin looked at a slip of paper he held. "Next is… _Jinx_."

The bad-luck sorceress displayed a mile-wide Cheshire Cat grin and her narrow, feline eyes glowed neon-pink for just a moment… then, she set off on the course just as Zero had.

Shortly after the course started… well, Smoke wasn't sure what to think. She was either pulling off some **_insanely_** complicated acrobatics… or doing the most **_bizarre_** dance moves imaginable… maybe both. The whole time, she was slinging pink bolts of energy that seemed to cause random, unpredictable things to happen to her targets. She finished almost as quickly as Zero had.

"Alright! Nice moves Jinx!" Zero cheered. Between this and the kiss earlier, Smoke was beginning to think there was some sort of… involvement, between the knight and the witch.

"Next… Beast Boy…." Robin read off.

As B.B. started the course, Smoke stared in amazement. He just changed into a green elephant! No wait… a giant python! Or no… a rhino? A giraffe? What the--? Now he was a platypus! What the Hell? Beast Boy finished the course in a quick time, just like his comrades.

"Now for Starfire…. Good luck, Star!" Robin cheered as the redhead from earlier floated over to the course.

Robin started things up again, and Star surprised the Hell out of Smoke. She took off into the air. "What the Hell? You're telling me that chick can **_FLY_**?" Smoke demanded, mouth agape. Zero just nodded and smirked.

Star took out a bunch of flying robo-drones with a barrage of green starbolts.

"Oh great… she's also the worlds largest bug zapper, apparently." Smoke chuckled.

Star finished the course in excellent time, prompting the next one up…

"Cyborg… it's all you, man." Robin said.

The big guy grinned and charged up his sonic cannon.

The course started and Cy immediately got into a fire fight with some turrets… and won in about 30 seconds.

"Damn! That cannon packs a punch…." Smoke whistled to himself, clearly impressed.

Cy blew away some more obstacles and dodged a few randomly placed booby traps, and crossed the finish line.

"Okay… time for you, Raven." Robin informed.

The dark telepath said nothing, but levitated over to the course.

The first thing to happen was a large robot with missile arms emerging from a large trapdoor. It fired at the girl, and Smoke began to get concerned… there was no way she was fast enough to dodge those missiles!

"_Azarath, Metrion, **Zinthos**!_"

The missiles began glowing jet-black… froze in midair… and made a perfect U-Turn, blowing up the bot that had launched them… Smoke just stared, dumbfounded. Raven's magic words helped her take out a few more bots and turrets, and she hit the finish line fairly quickly.

"Well… that just leaves **me**." Robin sighed, nodding.

The Boy wonder pulled off several different martial arts moves as he began the course, taking out a few bots… and used a couple birdarangs and exploding discs to take out some gunner turrets… He finished the course the quickest of all so far.

Robin turned to Smoke. "Well… that just leaves you. Unless, you'd rather not, I mean."

Smoke wasn't concerned… he felt fairly certain he could get through with little trouble. So, he popped some fresh shells into his shotgun, cranked his chainsaw with a shrill whirr, and spun a revolver around on his index finger.

"Nah… let me at it." He insisted.

_**Meanwhile, Back at the Military Base**_

"_**Dammit**! I don't care how you do it! I don't care how long it takes! **JUST BRING ME THAT PROTOTYPE**_!", screamed professor Wagner.

"Sir, Yes Sir!" A platoon of marines responded, before leaving off to hunt down smoke.

"Sir… we've just come up with something that may help…" a technician said, walking up to Wagner.

"Yes, yes, what is it?" He asked exasperatedly.

The techie held up a vile of green liquid.

"This… is a special type of acid we've concocted. It is capable of dissolving any substance almost instantly… except human tissue."

"And how will that help?"

"If all else fails… this can be used on the prototypes weaponry… they will be dissolved, without actually harming the prototype."

(A/N: By the way… this acid can be used on other things… like, _oh say_… **rock**, for example. So say, just **_hypothetically_**… _somebody was somehow encased in rock, but still alive on the inside… the rock could be melted without hurting the person_…'hint hint'… if you guys don't get what I'm hinting at, I should smack you…)

_**Meanwhile, in space…**_

(A/N: Don't ya just love all these sudden, wacky scene changes…?)

Gliding slowly through the inky, black void of outer space… was Starfire.

Well, no… it's not. But she LOOKS almost like Starfire… she is, in reality, Star's older and definitely meaner sister, Blackfire. She looks identical to Star, except with black hair instead of red, and metallic under-armor under her top and skirt. In place of Star's shining emerald eyes, Blackfire had dull, bluish-grays.

_'Damned Sister… damned banishment… damned Tamaran… entire damned galaxy…' _Her mind growled savagely, her eyes blazing with violet fire as she did so.

Her thoughts are interrupted when she looks back and sees a large group of things…things that look like missiles with long tentacles.

With a growing look of panic, Blackfire turns around and soars at top speed towards the nearest planet: a small, mostly blue planet dotted with greens, browns, and whites. Somewhere she'd been before…

**Earth.**

_**Well that's the end of Chapter Two… and I think I've fairly thoroughly set up a few events to come. As always, read, and then review to let me know what you think.**_

_**The Mad Phantom…**_


	3. Chapter Two

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans aren't mine._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses… Chapter Two**_

Smoke was now in his element. If there was one thing he knew about in life, it was combat… it **WAS**, after all, what he'd been made for… his purpose in life, he supposed.

'**BLAM**!… _ca-click_… **BLAM**!… _ca-click_… **BLAM**!… _ca-click_…. **BLAM**!… _ca-click_.'

This was all that could be heard as a small group of the Titan's obstacle-course-bots were blown away by a thick cloud of buckshot, and emptied shotgun shells hit the ground with every blast.

Smoke was dashing across the dirt ground of the obstacle course at high speed, going as fast as his genetically engineered legs would take him.

In his path, a row of spikes popped up, but he saw them and leapt over. When he landed, he kept going and was ambushed by more bots.

Two of the bots raised their arms, and small laser guns emerged from their forearms. Immediately, they let fly.

Smoke ducked, barrel rolled on the ground, and missed the searing hot lasers, and cocked his shotgun.

"Time to die." He snickered to a nearby bot.

_**'BLAM!'**_

The unlucky machine went flying, it's body twisted around in midair as 4 shells-worth of buckshot lit it up. It landed with a thunk, smoking from countless, large holes punctured into it's metal body. It was down for the count.

The others began to close in on Smoke, but the young gun just laughed. With a flick of his hand, he unclasped his chainsaw and gave the cord a mighty yank, holding the saw in the hand opposite the shotgun.

_**'Vroom… Vroom… VREEEEEEEE!'**_

"_Oh yeah_… sing for Smoke, baby…" The supersoldier chuckled, patting the handle of the saw affectionately.

The bots charged Smoke with laser arms outstretched.

_**'Vrew! Vrew….Vreeee vreww!'**_

A couple headless bots slid to the ground, sparking from their stump necks. Another couple fell back missing arms or legs.

Smoke ran forward past the mechanical remnants… and soon encountered a new obstacle: a large pair of pillars rose up in front of the narrow path he was on. Then, large blades extended from the sides of the pillars, and they began spinning, forming a large, cutting-blade barrier in his path.

"**_Damn…! _**How'm I gonna… ?" He started, perplexed.

Then he had an idea. His saw was guaranteed indestructible… **that** thing wasn't.

Firing up the chainsaw, he stuck it in between the two large pillars, but instead of being ground up and sliced to bits… the saw literally stopped the grinders from turning, short-circuiting the thing, and blowing it up.

"_Heheheh_…. **Cool**." Smoke grunted simply, and took off again.

He didn't get far before grating opened up on the ground in front of him and spewing out small, flying drones with missile launchers.

Still smiling from ear-to-ear, Smoke put away the shotgun and chainsaw… and drew his dual **_.44_** magnums, crossing them in front of his chest impressively.

"Alright… time for a little target practice…" Smoke muttered.

_**'POW! POW! POW!'**_

The bullets flew as Smoke started pumping the triggers as fast as his trigger-fingers would move. With each precision shot, a .44 magnum bullet destroyed a drone. Naturally, Smoke could only fire 12 bullets at a time, but seeing as how he could reload in about… oh, say… 5 seconds, it really didn't impair his formidability in the least.

After clearing out the flying bots, Smoke blew across the barrels of his revolvers producing a low-pitched hum, the black smoke for which he was named trailing away as he did so.

"Now **_THAT_**…" he laughed, loading more bullets into the revolver chambers, "… felt _good_…"

Running forward, he jumped several large holes in the ground, and crossed the finish line.

As he neared back to where the other Titans were waiting, he grinned, spun his revolvers around on his fingers, and slipped them back into the holsters simultaneously.

"And so **_that_**…" he turned to face the stunned Titans "… is how it's done."

"Dude…" Beast Boy began with wide eyes. "That… was… **_awesome_**."

"Bravo! Knew ya had it in ya!" Zero cheered.

"You did great! I'm surprised…" Robin nodded.

"… Nice…" Mumbled Raven simply.

"Man, you did a number on my bots… s'ok, though. I can fix 'em." Cy said.

"Most stupendous! You triumphed easily!" Star bubbled, clapping.

"That was _really_ good!" Jinx said smiling. "… but not as good as Zero…" she purred under her breath.

Smoke blushed and tried to shrug off the praise he was receiving, but to limited effect.

Inside, he felt for the first time… like he actually belonged.

_**In an Abandoned Warehouse in Downtown Jump City…**_

It was an old, rundown warehouse. It's former use would have been a complete mystery to an onlooker; there were no old signs or such to indicate what it might have been used to store.

That didn't matter though…

On the top floor of the large, six story warehouse… was an old bedroom. It may have been used by someone who had worked large amounts of time at the warehouse, and had needed a place to sleep on his or her breaks. It was now reduced to a rusty, metal bed frame with an old tattered mattress and a moth-eaten blanket… there was a single, flattened pillow.

The only other things in the room were an empty wooden crate, a large, cracked mirror, and a stack of bricks in the corner. But again, none of this really matters…

What matters… is who happens to be in the room.

Lying on her side on the old mattress is Blackfire… she'd come to Earth once again in an attempt to elude the pursuit of intergalactic law enforcement… Earth had happened to be the nearest planet, and she certainly couldn't have gone back to Tamaran; she was banished.

But even if she could have, she wouldn't. Blackfire hated that place with a passion… why wouldn't she? It had always hated her… even before she had ever done anything wrong.

Ever since she was born, Blackfire had always been different. Even when she was just a baby, people had always feared and loathed her… just because… well, she was different. They couldn't believe that the rulers of Tamaran would have a child so strange. Instead of the typical red or brown hair and green eyes… she had black hair and blue-gray eyes… as far as anyone knew, that was a first on Tamaran. People hated the fact that such a little freak of nature was next in line for the throne.

But then, everything changed… and thing's got even worse for Blackfire.

A sister was born… and then, people rejoiced. It was always Starfire this, and Starfire that… Finally, a child who was worthy of the throne, a normal, healthy, young Tamaranean. Yes, little Starfire got everything… everything that should have been Blackfire's… and the little twit was so naïve, she didn't even realize how much her sister hated her for that.

Not until her first visit to Earth, anyway. After that, and her subsequent takeover over Tamaran.

Right now, Blackfire was doing something very unusual for her… she was _crying_.

Just the thought of her wretched, little sister enraged her! How dare that little thief steal everything from her? _Everything_…

But right now, that was the least of Blackfire's problems. She was being chased by drones. _Centauri Police drones…_

She'd hidden herself inside this old warehouse, but things had only gotten worse. She'd never thought about it until now, but her Tamaranean immune system was completely vulnerable to Earthly illness. Her sister's stupid little friends, Blackfire was sure, had gotten her some sort of vaccine or some such when she'd first come here to keep her from getting sick.

Blackfire, however, hadn't had that luxury.

Soon after arriving at the warehouse, she'd gotten sick… **_VERY_** sick. For us, it would have probably been something like the common cold, or a mild flu… but to her, and her vulnerable immune system, it was much worse. She was shaking violently, but wasn't sure whether to put the old, tattered blanket over her or not… although she was cold and shaking on the outside, she was burning up on the inside, and sweated off and on.

Her head ached terribly, and she couldn't even see straight. Her vision swooned in and out of focus and her nose was stopped up and runny.

"_Oh, For X'hal's Sake_… could thing's possibly get **any** worse…?" she moaned softly, crying and clutching her aching, stuffy head.

What worried her the **most**… was that if the Centauri drones found her in _this_ shape… she was done for…

**_Back with the Titans…_**

"Well… looks like we've got ourselves a potential team member." Sub-Zero said genially to Robin.

"I see your point; he's good… but do you think the others will agree?" The Boy Wonder asked.

Zero and Robin were in Robin's room discussing Smoke's impressive run on the obstacle course.

"Rob, I'm _positive_ they will. Besides… you can never have too many friends, right?" The knight joked.

"I… I guess you're right. We should ask the others… then Smoke, of course." Responded the Boy Wonder.

As they were talking, Smoke was in the living room lying on the couch and snoozing. He was snoring softly, but not enough to disturb anybody. He was not tired out by the obstacle course; he just liked to sleep… back at the military base, most of his time had been spent in a sort of sleep…

Starfire, Raven, and Beast Boy were all in their rooms, and Cyborg was working on the T-Car. Jinx was in her room, as well.

Sub-Zero and Robin made their way to Star's room and knocked on the door.

"Hey, uh, Star? Can we come in for a minute?" Robin asked.

A moment later, Star opened up the door and allowed them in, beaming.

"Welcome, friend Robin and friend Zero!" she said brightly, "What is it you require of me?"

"Well… Robin and I…" began Zero, "… were thinking earlier that maybe… Smoke could…" Zero paused, carefully considering his words. "… Join the team? I mean, he did excellent in the course and all, and he doesn't have a place to stay anyway…"

Starfire was quick to agree. "Marvelous! A magnificent idea! I would be happy to have friend Smoke stay with us."

After finishing their talk with Star, Robin and Zero proceeded onto Raven's room.

"Uh… hey, Zero… you knock." Robin stammered.

"No… _you_ knock." Zero insisted.

"Are you crazy? Raven **hates** it when people knock on her door!" Robin exclaimed.

"And that's why _you_ want _me_ to knock?" Zero demanded incredulously.

"Exactly!" Robin answered immediately.

The door opened up in front of them with Raven standing there. Apparently, she had heard them and decided to nip their argument in the bud.

"Oh, uh… Raven. Listen, could we talk to you for a sec?" Zero asked.

"… Sure." She answered dryly.

"Listen… about Smoke's run on the obstacle course earlier… well, that and the fact that he doesn't have anywhere to go… Zero and I were thinking…" Robin started but Raven cut him off.

"You want him to join us." Raven stated. It wasn't a question.

"_Uh_… yes." Zero finished.

Raven just shrugged. "Go for it. He seems trustworthy enough."

Then, without further ado, she turned, went back in her room, and shut the door. Rob and Zero looked at each other in surprise.

"Well… **_that_** went well." Zero said genially. Robin nodded.

They made their way to B.Boy's room from there, and knocked tentatively on the door.

The green shape shifter opened the door and yawned.

"Oh… hey guys… what's…(_yawn_)… up?" He said drowsily… maybe he'd been asleep like Smoke.

"Well, we kind of wanted to talk to you about our new 'guest'…" Robin started.

"Oh Smoke? Dude, that guy's _awesome_!" B.B. busted out suddenly. "Did you see him light up those bots earlier? And that **chainsaw**! He—"

Robin decided to cut him off early. "Yeah, yeah… actually, the reason we wanted to talk to you about Smoke…"

Zero wanted to get straight to the point. "We want him to join the Titans." He said bluntly.

Beast Boy grinned widely. "Are you _serious_? That'd be awesome! Things would be a lot more fun with Smoke around, I think… I wonder if he likes video games?" B.Boy wondered thoughtfully.

"Yeah, well… glad you feel that way." Zero said. "We're gonna go talk to Cyborg now."

They left B.B. and made their way down to the garage where the T-Car was stored, and sure enough, there was Cy, working under the hood of the T-Car.

"Hey Cy,… mind if we interrupt you for a second?" Zero asked.

"Huh? Sure… I'm just making some adjustments to the engine." Cy responded, coming up from under the hood holding a wrench.

"Well, we'll get straight to the point. How'd you feel about Smoke being on the team?" Robin asked quickly.

Cyborg looked at them in surprise. "Hmm… Smoke, a Titan?… Sounds good to me. We can always use more allies, right?" He said with a shrug and a grin.

"Well then… that just leaves Jinx." Robin said.

"Hey, Robin… let _me_ take care of that one…" Zero requested, a mischievous look in his crimson eyes.

"Uh… sure, I guess…" The Boy Wonder answered with a small shrug.

_**A Short While Afterwards…**_

Jinx was in her room watching T.V. and lying on the bed… she was rather bored… but she was shaken out of her boredom by a knock at the door.

"Come in… it's open." She said, not taking her eyes off the soap opera she was watching.

Zero walked in with his hands behind his back.

"Zero! Come in! What are you here for?" She asked in surprise.

"Oh, Jinx you _wound_ me..." he joked with mock hurt. "Must a poor boy have a _reason_ to see the girl he loves?"

She got up and sidled over to him, putting her arms around his neck. "No… I suppose not…" she purred softly. She noticed he was holding his arms intently around his back. "What've you got there?" she asked suspiciously.

"Well… since you asked…" he said softly. He pulled his arms back in front of him, revealing a large, white bouquet of red roses with a pink cloth tied around it.

"Surprise." He chuckled, pleased at the reaction on her face.

"_Oh_… _Oh **Zero**_… these are for **me**? … They're _**beautiful**_. Thank you so much!" She said earnestly, throwing her arms around him and kissing him on the cheek. Zero just sighed happily and closed his red eyes, enjoying her touch.

"It was nothing, my sweet…" he insisted, then he continued: "By the way… Jinx, while I'm thinking about it… what would you think about Smoke being on our side? A Titan?" He asked.

She pulled away from him and looked at him curiously. "Mmmm… sounds like an idea to me. I'd enjoy having him around. He seems like a nice enough guy…" she said slowly. "What do _you_ think?" she asked Zero

"Well… Smoke is extremely talented… and he has no place to go or stay. And if he's really being pursued, then I'd feel terrible if I didn't do _something_ to help him."

"Just like you would've felt terrible if you hadn't of helped **me** those couple months ago?" Jinx giggled.

"Well… yeah, I guess…" he said with a smile and a shrug. "Perhaps I'm just too nice." He joked.

Jinx hugged him again, holding the bouquet of roses close to her as she did so.

"Maybe… but if you are, I'd rather not see you change…" she said softly. Then, she leaned up and kissed him on the lips.

After bidding his girlfriend goodbye, Zero knew there was one last person to see… the gunman himself.

Making his way to the living room, he found Smoke still sleeping on the couch, his boots dangling off the edge and hands behind his head, snoring softly and slowly.

"Uh… hey Smoke… _Smoke_?" the Knight shook him by the shoulder lightly. No effect. "Smoke… wake up." Still no effect. Zero sighed and realized he had only one option left. He rolled up his white sleeves… and blasted Smoke with a 'woosh!' of cold air.

**_"YAAAHH! COLD!"_** Smoke screamed, shooting up and shivering.

"Now that I have your attention…" chuckled Sub-Zero, "… there's something I'd like to discuss with you, my friend."

"_Damn_! Ya could've been a little more subtle!" said Smoke with chattering teeth. "But… sure, what is it?"

"An invitation." Zero said simply.

"Invitation…?" the gunner said, puzzled. "To what?"

"Well, let me explain…" Zero began, "As you doubtless know, my friends and I aren't exactly what you would call 'normal.' We all have powers or abilities of some sort… and we make a living protecting the city."

"Okaaaaay… so where are you going with this?" Smoke yawned. "You're superheroes. And you've all been very generous to let me stay with you."

"Where I'm going with this…" Zero laughed, "Is that we were thinking… would you be interested in being part of the team?"

For a moment, there was silence.

"… _**Me**_?" Smoke said softly.

"You." The warrior replied, smiling widely.

"……" Smoke was silent.

They… _wanted_ him? They actually _wanted_ to be his friends? He had assumed up until now, that all this friendliness and allowing him to stay… was all because they felt sorry for him. He had never thought… they actually **_liked_** him.

"… You're _serious_?" Smoke asked in disbelief.

"As serious as a heart attack." Zero joked, "Knight's honor."

"… I… I guess… I mean…. I'd love to." The young gun stuttered, grinning somewhat.

"Great! Now, we'll just need to clear out a room for you and—"

Sub-Zero was interrupted in mid-sentence as Robin came in the room looking worried.

"Zero! We've got trouble!" Robin said quickly.

"… _Trouble_? What kind of trouble?" the knight asked with a blink.

"We're not sure… but there're reports of some sort of disturbance at an old warehouse downtown…."

Sub-Zero turned to Smoke.

"Well… you ready for this?" he asked jokingly.

**_'Snap! Ca-Click!'_**

Smoke was already on his feet with a cocked shotgun.

"I'm always ready… **_always_**."

_**The end of this chapter is near… in fact, this is it. But I'm going to have the next one up soon, so don't forget to read and review fellas.**_

_**The Mad Phantom…**_


	4. Chapter Three

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans… or do I? … (Long pause.)… Nope. I don't._

**_Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Three_**

It was difficult fitting an extra person into the T-Car, but they finally managed to squeeze Smoke in. Sub-Zero and Jinx were gliding along behind them, using Zero's 'Ice-Glider' trick… On the way there, Robin had given Smoke a Titan's communicator in case he ever needed it.

"… Are we there yet?" B.Boy whined.

"No." Raven answered flatly.

Then, five minutes later…

"… Are we there yet?" The green joker asked again.

"**_No_**." Raven and Smoke said simultaneously and firmly.

Another ten minutes went by…

"… Now, are we there yet?" B.B. persisted.

**_"… NOOOOO!"_** Robin, Smoke, Raven, and Cyborg yelled angrily.

Beast Boy's face almost flapped with the force of that last, 'NO!'. "_Sheesh_! Just askin'….." he muttered.

Outside the T-Car, a muffled yell was heard and Jinx asked Zero: "What on Earth was **that**?"

"I think B.B. was asking, 'Are we there yet?', again." The knight responded. "You'd think he's learned by now…"

"Oh… makes sense." She said nodding and giggling. "But some people never learn."'

After several more minutes of traveling in which there was, thankfully, no more peeps from Beast Boy, they finally made it to the old, rundown warehouse and got out.

"Man… this place is a _dump_…" Cy groaned in disgust. "Yo, Robin… you _sure_ this is the place?"

"Oh, I'm sure." Robin replied. "But I don't see any signs of disturbance…"

"Well… I guess we'll have to have a look." Zero said with a shrug.

"Okay… how about this: I'll check out the perimeter, Star… you take the first floor, Cy the second, B.B. the third, Raven the fourth floor, Jinx the Fifth, Zero the sixth floor… and Smoke, you check out the basement." Robin explained the plan.

The Titans nodded and split up to search their designated areas. Smoke went in and found the long, dark stairwell that led down to the basement. He paused and looked down… it was _pitch black_ down there…

Thankfully, Smoke's keen eyes noticed a large glass case labeled **'In Case Of Emergency Power Outage' **mounted on the wall above the stairs.

With a swift punch, he smashed open the glass, and pulled out a flashlight.

"_Hehehe_… **paydirt**." The gunman muttered, pleased with his luck.

With a 'click', he switched the flashlight on and drew one of his revolvers, holding it in the hand opposite the light.

Carefully, Smoke began descending down the old, wooden steps down into the dark basement. They creaked and bent under his weight… but thankfully, they held up.

Once down there, Smoke regretted ever having agreed to this.

"Damn… this place gives me the creeps…" he mumbled with a shiver. "Why couldn't **_Raven_** have gotten the basement? She's the one that's big on dark, creepy places…"

Still though, he pressed on, waving his flashlight around and looking at all angles in an attempt to make sure nothing else was down there.

Meanwhile, Star was searching the first floor… she flew around for several minutes, searching every nook and cranny for signs of anything out of the ordinary… but found nothing.

Until, she heard something. She could have sworn she heard a '_whoosh'_ behind her…

She turned around, but nothing was there. Still, just to be safe, she backtracked and looked around some more. Still, nothing… until…

With a loud crash, one of the walls was knocked in by a large, robotic drone with metallic, pink tentacles.

"_What_?" Star gasped. She recognized it at once as one of the drones that had come to Earth before searching for… wait…

If one of these drones is here, then… **_Blackfire_** was here, too.

The drone hovered in front of Starfire for a moment, then reached out quickly with it's long tentacles, grabbing her. She struggled and had just enough time for a single, panicked scream before the tentacle covered her mouth… thankfully, Robin heard the scream from outside.

"… Star?" he whispered. "She's in trouble!"

Robin took off through the front doors, dashed towards where the sound had come from, and saw Star wiggling around in the bot's grip, trying desperately to escape and eyes going green with fright.

"**_STAR_**!" he screamed.

Whipping out his Bo staff, he charged the bot and leapt to attack it… but it whipped around a free tentacle and knocked him out of the air.

"_Oomph_!" he grunted, hitting the ground with a thud.

The drone began flying off, dragging the struggling Tamaranean with it. But Robin wasn't about to give up that easily.

He reached into his belt and grabbed a grappling hook. Taking quick, careful aim, he fired it off and it stuck deeply into the robot's backside.

He was dragged along with the flying bot, but knew how to stop it. Robin climbed along the cord of his grappling hook, and made it onto the drone's back. He ripped off a small panel and started ripping out the bot's inner wires and machinery.

Sparking and smoking, the malfunctioning bot dropped down to the ground and exploded… but Robin grabbed Star as the tentacles let go, and jumped down, landing safely.

"… Star? Star, are you okay?" Robin asked, helping her to her feet.

"Oh… I am all right. But Robin, why was a Centauri drone **here**?" she asked, deeply troubled.

"I… I don't know. The last time we saw one of those, it was here looking for… your sister."

"….. Could Blackfire be here again?" Star asked softly in disbelief. "She is banished from Tamaran… perhaps she returned here?"

"I just don't know Star." Robin said. "But if she **IS** here… we're going to find her."

Robin was interrupted by the ringing of his Titans communicator. He answered it; Cyborg was on the other end.

"Robin! You're not gonna believe this, but—"

"You found a drone… like the one's that came after Star that time."

Cy's eyes went wide in surprise. "Huh? How'd you…?"

"Because we found one too."

"Well, look… there are five more of them… they flew off towards the city. We need to get after them." Cy informed.

"Right… you call the others, tell them. We'll go after them together."

"Gotcha." Cy nodded.

**_Back in the Basement with Smoke_**

Smoke was fairly sure by now that nothing out of the ordinary was down here. He sighed and shivered, the cold dampness of the basement getting to him. Then, he heard something ringing in his coat pocket… it was the communicator Robin had given him on the way here. He pulled it out and answered.

"Huh? Cyborg? What is it?" Smoke asked.

"Listen, Smoke… we got ambushed by some drones earlier. We're going after them, but we need somebody to stay here and make sure none of them come back here. Can you handle it?" Cy asked.

"Sure… wait a minute… did you say, '_Drones'_?"

"Yeah, but there's no time to explain; we have to get going while the gettin's good. We'll be back to pick you up after we take these bots out."

With that, Cy's end of the communicator blinked off, leaving Smoke by himself in the basement.

"Well… looks like I'm on guard duty." The gunner sighed softly to himself.

He started to walk back towards the upper floors.

_"…Ohhhhh….."_

Smoke stopped dead in his tracks and turned around. What the Hell was **THAT**?

_"…Ohhhhh…."_

It was like… someone moaning. Someone in pain.

_"…oh….ohhhh…"_

Smoke flicked his flashlight toward the source of the sound, and saw nothing but a stack of old, wooden crates. But a second later, he noticed something… odd. One of the crates was moving… sort of shaking.

Smoke holstered his revolver and got out the shotgun…

Walking slowly toward the moving crate, light and shotgun in hand, Smoke prepared himself in case he was about to be ambushed by one of the 'Drones' his friends had mentioned.

He was right in front of the large crate now… with a shaking hand, he reached out…

In the space of three or four seconds, he ripped the top off the crate, pointed his flashlight down into it, and pointed the barrels of his shotgun down into it as well. And he got a surprise…

"Huh?… Starfire?" Smoke murmured in disbelief.

But it wasn't… it was a girl that looked eerily similar to Star, but with black hair and slightly different clothes. She was curled up at the bottom of the crate, shaking and moaning softly.

"Uhh…. Lady? Lady, you okay?"

The girl jerked violently as if he'd struck her and looked up at him. Smoke was startled to see her face was pale and sweaty, her eyes watery and slightly swollen.

"W-who…. Who are you….?" She whispered hoarsely and weakly.

"Me? Name's Smoke. Look, miss, I dunno why you're crawled up in a crate… really ain't my business… but anyway, I'd be careful if I were you… there's weird robots around."

"….." Blackfire was silent. That was what she was afraid of. The drones had found her, and she was too weak to fight them now…

"Uh… listen…. Do you, like…. Need some help, or something? You… don't really look so good…." Smoke asked hesitantly.

"…S-sick…" Blackfire whimpered.

"You're sick? Well, why didn't ya say so?" he demanded.

In a move that elicited a surprised gasp from Blackfire, he holstered the shotgun, reached down into the crate, and pulled her up with one arm. He helped her to her feet.

"Can you stand up?"

"…. I …. Not sure…"

Blackfire stood there for a moment, wavering… and then toppled to the ground and lay there shaking.

"Too dizzy…" she groaned.

"… Here, lemme help ya." Smoke took her arm again, helped her back up, and helped her walk with him back upstairs.

"So… what's your name, anyway?"

For a long moment, Blackfire was silent. She **WAS** a wanted criminal… would it really be a good idea to tell him? Then, she remembered this guy was an Earthling and had probably never heard of her.

"… Blackfire."

Smoke stared in disbelief. Not only did this chick **look** like Star, she had a similar name, too. There was NO WAY this was just a coincidence. But for right now, he decided not to bring that subject up.

Once they had gotten back up to the top floor, Blackfire sat down on an old metal bench in a corner. Smoke sat down next to her.

"My friends'll be back pretty shortly… maybe I can get 'em to give you a lift to the nearest doctor or something…" He offered after a moment.

"..No… can't…"

"Huh? You can't?" he asked. "Well… the least I can do if give you a lift home."

"Don't have a home." Blackfire replied flatly.

He stared at her. Up until recently, he hadn't either. And that's what gave him the idea.

"… If you need a place to stay, I can ask my friends. We got plenty of room."

She looked at him strangely; it was a mixture of irritation and confusion.

"… Why?"

"Why what?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Why would you want to do all that? You don't even _know_ me."

He just shrugged. "Just tryin' to be hospitable… 'sides, you just seemed like you could use a hand, that's all."

She stared at him for another moment and didn't say anything else.

Meanwhile, outside the building, more trouble was afoot… and it wasn't the Centauri Robots. 

In front of the entrance stood a platoon of soldiers. They wore full body armor, and were armed with stun guns. They stood at attention in a block formation.

"**_Atten-shun_**!"

They all snapped their heels together and stood perfectly still, keeping their eyes on the man who had screamed the command.

He was about 6'8", about 300 pounds; muscular and well built. He wore camo body armor all over, and a large helmet with a yellow-tinted visor and carried a large laser cannon in his arms.

"Our mission… is simple. We go in there, bag the brat, and make an easy paycheck!" he hollered at the assembled troops. "But whatever you do, don't actually hurt 'im, or Professor Wagner will have our heads for trophies… any questions?"

No one said anything.

"_Very good_. Now… **MOVE** **OUT**!"

"**_Sir, yes sir_**!"

They immediately commenced to march forward, and the leader kicked in the large warehouse door.

On the other side of the building, Smoke and Blackfire heard this.

"What in the Hell?" the gunman muttered in confusion.

"Who… is it?" Blackfire asked.

"I don't know… but I don't think it's my friends…"

Then, the lead soldier shouted into the building, it echoed all the way to where they were.

"You! Prototype! Come out with your hands in the air! We are authorized to take you back as property of the U.S. military… by force if need be."

Smoke immediately went very pale.

"Blackfire… get inside one of those crates." He warned her quickly, pointing to another empty box.

"What? But… who—"

"**_Now_**." He insisted.

Having no idea what was going on, she did as he said. Normally, she wouldn't have let **ANYONE** order her around… but she didn't feel up to fighting… she was still so _ill_. And for reasons even she was not sure of… she actually trusted Smoke… even if he was a perfect stranger, almost.

Once Blackfire had hidden herself, Smoke whipped out his shotgun and chainsaw.

"Okay, bastards… who wants to have a little?" he snarled under his breath. "I got plenty for _everybody_…"

Smoke decided it would probably be wiser to take the initiative and attack, as opposed to letting them come to him. So, with a crank of his saw, he dashed off towards the other end of the building…

The soldiers walked slowly and cautiously through, keeping their eyes peeled for any sign of the 'Prototype.' One of them heard what sounded like a cranked saw… he turned around, but there was nothing.

"Sir! I think I hear something…" he informed the leader.

"Like what?" the big guy snorted.

"Well… like—"

He never got the chance to finish his sentence, because the next thing they knew… he had a cranked chainsaw blade protruding from his chest. He gargled and screamed incoherently for a moment and then slid off the blade, bloodied and dead.

"… Like **_THAT_**." Smoke chuckled, standing right behind the slain soldier.

**_"OPEN FIRE!"_**

Smoke took cover behind a large, mechanical wench that used to have been used to move crates and boxes around. A flurry of stunner blasts ricocheted off it's surface.

Carefully, Smoke edged around it and did a barrel roll on the ground and then took off running at top speed.

He was running so fast, none of their shots could hit him. As he ran, he fired off shell after shell, dropping two or three soldiers with each shotgun-burst.

"Idiots! **_SHOOT HIM_**!"

Smoke was seriously getting tired of this… he decided to make things quick. He drew his dual revolvers and started popping off caps, making lethally accurate headshots with each press of the triggers.

By now, the only one left was the leader.

"**_Grrrr_**! You'll _pay_ for this, you **_freak_**!" The leader roared, raising his cannon.

But he had just hit a nerve…

Just as he fired off a powerful, searing-red-hot laser beam, Smoke cranked his saw and leapt over it. He came down on his shoulder with the saw, and gave it a fierce swing, effectively cutting the goon's arm off. Then, as the leader screamed, he cocked his shotgun and aimed it into his face.

"_Well, well, well_, **_one-arm_**… who's the **freak** **_now_**?"

'**BLAM!**…**_Splat!_**…_ca-click._'

As the military leader's headless, one-armed corpse fell to the ground, still spewing blood from the arm socket and smoking from the neck, Smoke spun his shotgun around and slid it into it's holster.

"... Don't you _ever_…. Call **me**…. A…. **_Freak_**." Smoke snarled softly and vehemently at the lifeless, buckshot-ridden body.

The gunman did not notice, but Blackfire was staring wide eyed out of the top of the Crate she'd taken refuge in. She hadn't realized this guy was so… _formidable_.

Just then, Smoke was startled by the ringing of his communicator. He opened it up just in time to see Robin.

"_Smoke_! We took out those bots before they could cause anymore damage… but are you okay? We're on our way there, and we thought we could hear gunshots…"

Smoke sighed heavily. "Well… we're okay now. We were attacked by military forces, but I took 'em down."

Robin raised an eyebrow. "Wait… '_We'_? What do you mean, '_We'_?"

"Well, I found a girl in the basement. She seems to be pretty sick… she doesn't have a place to stay, either." The gunner explained.

"We'll see… I think we've got room." Robin answered. "We'll be there shortly to pick you guys up, then."

"Right… G'bye."

Smoke switched off the communicator and looked back at Blackfire… only to see her looking at him fearfully and angrily.

"… _You_…." She hissed venomously.

Smoke was taken aback by her sudden anger. "_Huh_? Me **what**?"

"You…You… you're one of _them_!" she spat, pointing at his communicator. "Well, you won't take **_ME_** alive! I'll die before you drag me back to that space prison again!"

And with that, she floated up into the air, just like Smoke had seen Star do before, and her eyes began blazing with Violet energy.

_**There seems to have been a slight misunderstanding here… Blackfire's pissed, the Titans are unaware, and Smoke's just confused.**_

_**Anyway, Read and Review, Please!**_

**_The Mad Phantom…_**


	5. Chapter Four

_Disclaimer: I do ot-nay own the Een-Tay Itans-Tay… Roughly Translated: I do not own the Teen Titans._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Four**_

Sub-Zero and Jinx were following along behind the T-Car on the way back to Smoke.

"Hmm… I have a bad feeling about this…" Sub-Zero muttered softly as they neared the old warehouse where Smoke still was.

"What do you mean?" Jinx asked, cocking her head slightly. "We destroyed those robot-jellyfish things… and Smoke hasn't reported any of them going back to the warehouse."

"I know, I know… I just feel… _uneasy_, that's all." The knight responded with a soft sigh.

By the time they reached the warehouse, they were surprised to find the place alive with noise.

"What the Heck's going on in there?" Beast Boy asked getting out of the car.

"I don't know… but it sounds like gunshots. Smoke must be in some kinda trouble!" Cy responded.

They immediately ran in and found Smoke hiding behind a crate, reloading his revolvers. He looked up at them, and gasped.

"Oh man, thank God you're here! Listen, I know it sounds crazy… but I'm getting chased by this crazy alien chick that look just like Star and…"

"Blackfire..." Star whispered. From what Smoke had said, her fears were confirmed.

The gunner froze mid-sentence when he heard her. "W-What? How did you know her name?" he demanded.

"Uhh…. Pardon…" Zero interrupted them. "But could somebody please fill us in, too?" He said motioning to Jinx and himself.

"Yeah. Who's this _Blackfire_, anyway?" Jinx agreed.

For a moment, nothing was said as Starfire tried to think of the best way to explain it… but… she never got the chance. A flying bolt of violet energy soared out of nowhere and blasted her away. She had enough time to cry out in pain before thudding into a wall.

"… **_I'M_** Blackfire." The other Tamaranean hissed, floating in from behind a large forklift. But after she said this, she began coughing violently and held a shaking hand to her mouth.

Starfire got up off the ground, eyes glowing bright, emerald-green.

"_**Sister**… you have gone too far this time_!" Star screamed with an anger uncharacteristic of her.

Without warning, the two aliens flew at each other and started blasting each other point blank with energy bolts. They flew around the room with such blinding speed; all you could see was a red, green, and purple blur that occasionally collided with another black, violet, and silver blur.

"Guys… I hate to say it, but we should get out of the way. They're too fast; there's nothing we can do." Cy said softly.

"What the Hell is going on?" Sub-Zero demanded. "Who is that girl, and why do she look so much like Star?"

"That's her sister… Blackfire." Robin explained. "They're nothing alike… Star's the most pure-hearted person you'll ever meet, but Blackfire's a monster."

"Well… I wouldn't say **that**…" Smoke said softly.

"What do you mean?"

"Well… she was actually not that bad at first. She was pretty nice and all when I first found her. She only freaked out when she saw my communicator." The gunman explained. "… And besides, she's hot."

At this last part, everyone almost did an anime-style face plant to the floor.

"I didn't know Starfire had a sister…" Jinx interjected, changing the subject.

They were interrupted again by Starfire going flying by and hitting the wall. She hit it dead on, and slid off with a soft moan. Robin immediately ran over and knelt down beside her.

"Star! Are you okay?" no answer. "Star, please answer me!"

Star just laid there in semi-consciousness; the blow to the head appeared to have stunned her. Blackfire hovered near again, charging up starblasts from her eyes.

"… Now… it's finally time for you to die, _sister_." Blackfire spat out the word sister with venom and sarcasm, as if it were something disgusting she wanted to get out of her mouth.

But before she fired off her eye rays, she froze in midair… and then fell to the ground coughing and hacking violently.

"Huh? What's wrong with her?" Robin asked.

"That's what I was gonna tell ya! She's pretty sick…" Smoke explained.

Blackfire stumbled back to her feet with glowing eyes again and snarled fiercely. "**_That doesn't matter! I'll kill her! I'll kill that little weasel!_**"

But just before she blasted Star with a finishing blow… Smoke got in the way.

"Please…stop this foolishness… now." He said softly.

"Or you'll what?" She sneered. "Shoot me? You couldn't hit the broad side of Mercury, much less me!" She knew that was a blatant lie; he was a superb marksman. But she didn't care.

"… Why do you want to hurt your own sister?" he asked, still in a soft, completely calm tone.

_"…**Feh**… **sister**…**sister**… she's no sister of mine! She always got everything! Everybody hated me, but they always loved little Starfire! For that, she **WILL** die, if it's the last thing I do!"_

She was charging up a bolt again. "**And if you're not going to get your dumb, Earthling ass out of the way, I'll kill you too!**"

Smoke just stood calmly and silently. After a moment, he spoke.

"… They thought you were a freak, is that it?" he asked in a calm voice.

Instantly, her eyes stopped glowing and she stared at him with wide eyes.

"… _What did you say_?" she hissed softly and demandingly.

"… They thought you were a freak, is that correct? They thought you were some sort of monster, just because you were different than they were."

Blackfire started shaking.

"…No…No, **_shut up_**! I…" she stammered.

"You've always been jealous of Star, because they treated her better than you. They thought she was _normal_." Continued Smoke, still standing between Star and Blackfire. "… And for that, you hate her…"

As the Titans watched in disbelief, Blackfire dropped from the air onto her knees, still shaking violently. She covered her ears, trying to block out his voice.

"**NO**! **NO**! **_I'm not listening to you_**!"

He continued anyway. "… I think I understand where you're coming from. Believe it or not... I've been called a freak, too."

**_"NO, YOU BASTARD! HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY UNDERSTAND ANYTHING! YOU'RE JUST A STUPID, WORTHLESS LITTLE…LITTLE…"_**

Blackfire stopped her angry shrieking and started sobbing and coughing softly and weakly.

"Dude… what is he doing?" Beast Boy whispered to Cyborg.

"I dunno…. But… looks to me like Smoke's got a plan…" Cy responded.

At this point, the young gunner started walking slowly and purposely towards the hysterical alien, his boots clicking softly across the cement floor of the old warehouse. Once he got over to her, he knelt down and touched her shoulder. Reflexively, she reached out and slapped him across the face with all her Tamaranean strength. He did not react.

"_Damn_… that hurt." He said simply. "But if it honestly makes you feel any better… go ahead."

She fell silent and looked up at him with a confused, stricken face. And then she fainted dead on the spot. Instinctively, Smoke reached out and caught her before her head hit the ground.

Everyone stared in amazement at what had just happened.

"That… that was **NOT** the same Blackfire…." Robin said slowly.

Starfire, who had regained some of her lucidity at this time, stared in shocked disbelief.

"… Is that why my sister hates me so much?" she asked in a soft, haunted whisper. "She… everyone… hated her because she was different?"

"… I don't know…" Robin answered hesitantly.

"The question remains… what do we do now?" Zero asked.

"Well… I guess we…. Perhaps we could…" Jinx started.

"We could what?" Raven asked sharply.

"We could… take her back to the Tower?" Everyone looked at the witch like she had lost her mind… except Smoke.

"Are you crazy? Do you know what she's capable of?" Robin demanded.

"… We'll take her back." Smoke said softly.

"Huh?"

"We'll take her back. Put her under surveillance or something, I don't care. But we have to do something. She's sick and in pain."

Robin was silent.

"If anything happens, I take full responsibility." Smoke added.

"Robin?" Star whispered, tugging on his arm.

"…Hm?"

"… Could we? Take her home?"

The Boy Wonder stared. "You actually want to help her? After all she's done to you?"

"I… she _**IS**_ my sister… and no matter what she's done… I want to help her. Even…. Even if she doesn't want to be helped."

Robin nodded in understanding, and the Titans made their way out with Smoke carrying the unconscious Blackfire in his arms.

_**Later, at the Tower…**_

Blackfire was in the infirmary, recovering. She was still unconscious, but Cyborg had administered a medicine through a needle.

"This should help her recover from whatever's makin' her sick, and keep her from getting sick again." He'd explained.

Sub-Zero and Smoke hadn't really been out and about since they'd arrived home. Zero had taken a large bag of ice and metal from his ship along with a few books, and Smoke had rounded up a bunch of Cy's old spare parts and tools… and they'd holed up in Cy's workroom. Nobody was sure what they were doing in there…

"I miss Zero…" Jinx whined from the living room couch. She was watching Cy and BB play a racing game on their gamestation.

"Yeah, and I want to know what Smoke was planning on doing with all that junk!" Cy agreed.

"Huh…. I think they said they were working on some new gear…" Beast Boy said uncertainly.

"Correction… we're **done** working on some new gear." Zero laughed, walking into the room with Smoke right behind him.

"Zero! It's about time…" Jinx said, getting up to go over to him.

"What have you been doing in my workroom?" Cy asked.

"Well… come on. We'll show you…" Smoke said with a grin.

They walked down to Cy's workroom, and Zero held the door open for the others to walk through. They looked around the room, until their gaze fell to a large steel table with a white blanket over it.

"What's with the blanket?" B.B. asked curiously.

"Well… it's not the blanket… it's what's under it…" Zero said cryptically.

The Knight and the Gunman laughed together and walked over to the table. Sub-Zero gave a cue with his hands and Smoke yanked the cover off. Everyone gasped loudly at what they saw.

There, on the table… was a hammer. Not just an ordinary hammer, it's handle was about six and a half feet long, and the actual head of the hammer was about three feet tall and about a foot and a half thick; clearly it was designed for combat. The handle was built from solid sterling silver, and the actual hammer head was forged from the same indestructible ice as Eviglasere, Zero's sword. The front of the head was engraved with the design of a snowflake…

Next to the giant ice-hammer… was a rifle. A very long, wooden handled rifle with a steel barrel. A large, brass scope with an ornate crosshair inside was mounted on top for aiming. The gun was extremely long, especially the barrel. A chamber for loading in bullets was on top.

"Guys… I give you: **_Hiverzbyrde_**. Means, 'Winter's Burden.' It's a war hammer, designed for melee combat." Zero explained, puffing his chest out with pride.

"And my new gear doesn't really have a name… but it's a customized Sniper Rifle… I made the rifle and the bullets myself." Smoke said. He pulled a bullet out of his coat pocket and held it out to them. It was large, about half-a-foot long, with a pointed, sharp tip. "This baby can hitany targetfrom up to five times the distance of your standard U.S. Army rifle, and with _ten_ times the penetration and power."

Cyborg stared in disbelief.

"You guys…. **Built** this stuff?"

"Yep!" Smoke said.

"Damn… I'm impressed!" Cy said.

Smoke and Zero blushed a little. "Ah well… we figured we needed some new weapons… so…"

The gunner decided to change the subject.

"How's Blackfire?"

Cy shook his head. "She hasn't woken up yet…"

Jinx sighed. "I feel kind of sorry for her… I know she's done some awful things and all, but still…"

B.B. shrugged. "Yeah, well… what Smoke said to her, sure seemed to work. Let's just hope she doesn't go ballistic again when she wakes up!"

Smoke shook his head solemnly. "You know… I wasn't around when she did all this stuff… but I wasn't just making that stuff up back there. I really do feel for her…" he looked down and examined himself. "If there's one thing in life, besides combat and weapons, that I know about… it's about being a freak." He finished sadly.

"Don't say that." B.B. said immediately. "Besides… you're no better off than me… I mean, dude, come on… I'm green!" he joked.

"Or me…" Cy said. "I'm almost completely mechanical. And that can get you some funny looks, too."

Smoke looked at his friends and smiled.

"… Thanks guys…"

"Don't mention it."

**Well, I'm thinking I'll leave it at that for right now. I'm sorry about taking so long to get this one up, but I've been busy…sorry. **

_**Anyway, the idea for giving Smoke a powerful, long-range weapon came directly from the reviewer, Austin… or is it Doc. MeGot? Not sure, so I'll put both. Anyway, thanks for the idea. As for the hammer, I figured if Smoke gets a new toy, Zero may as well, too!**_

_**So, read and review, please folks. Reviews keep me going.**_

**_The Mad Phantom…_**


	6. Chapter Five

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans most definitely aren't mine… trust me, you'd know if they were!_

**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Five.**

Sub-Zero sat on the roof of Titan's Tower, cross-legged and with his head propped up on his hands. It was a quiet night, and the only sounds to be heard were the young warrior's heavy sighs…

It had been a little over two months now since he'd been to Norblitz. And… although he'd never admit it, especially to his darling, Jinx… he kind of missed the place. But he did not regret his decision to leave it for Jump City. He may have loved Norblitz, but… he loved a certain pink-haired sorceress much, much more.

Right now, Zero was deep in thought… but it was interrupted by the door that led back inside the tower. He heard it close behind him. The knight looked back and saw Smoke walking onto the roof, brand new Sniper Rifle in hand.

"Oh… **Zero**! Didn't know you were out here!" he said.

"Hi Smoke…." Sub-Zero responded with a nod. "What are you doing out this late?"

The gunman grinned enthusiastically. "Oh, I'm just breakin' this baby in." he chuckled, stroking the gun's barrel with gusto.

Then, he pointed down off the edge of the roof. "Y'see that target I set up down there?"

Zero squinted his crimson eyes… and after a moment, he thought he could make out a tiny, black spot in the middle of an empty, sand field. "Uhh…. That?"

"Yep… that's it. I'm gonna blow that sucker away!" Smoke declared proudly, levering a bullet into the rifle chamber.

"Really?" Zero looked down again and added. "Um…. I don't mean to discourage you, but…. You **DO** realize we're on top of a 10 story skyscraper?"

"Don't matter! This sweet thing can hit anything." The gunner assured him firmly.

"Well then… mind if I watch?" Zero asked in mild amusement.

"Course not! You just sit right there, and ol' Smoke's gonna show ya a thing or two about aiming…"

Smoke stomped confidently over to the very edge of the rooftop, and checked to make sure the rifle was loaded. Afterwards, he gave the weapon one, last looking-over. He held it up; squinted one eye closed, and looked through the large scope. The gunner took a deep breath, and held it, so as not to let his aim waver. He focused hard… found the tiny, distant target…. Lined up the exact center of the crosshair with the target… concentrated… and…

… **KAAAOOOOOOOPPPPOOOOOOAAAWWWSSHH!**

Zero yelped, flinched, and covered his ears as a powerful, incredibly loud gunshot pierced the night… the rifle delivered the bullet so effectively, that it left a thick trail of billowing, white smoke into space. The gunshot echoed out into the night air, and a second later it was joined by a new sound… the muffled, distant sound of splintering wood.

The knight looked down and stared in shock… the little dot that was the wooden target… wasn't there anymore. In it's place was a bunch of little chunks and pieces along the ground…

"**YEE-HAW**! Yeah Baby! I told you, didn't I?" Smoke asked with a pleased laugh. He was proud of both his marksmanship and his craftsmanship, for building such a magnificent firearm.

"…Oh…Uh…" Zero, still shaking a little from the loud, sudden gunshot. "Yeah! Splendid! I knew you could do it…" he said finally, regaining his composure.

"Yeah, well…" Smoke suddenly lost a good bit of his enthusiasm. "… Listen, Zero… anything wrong? When I came up here, you… didn't look so good."

Sub-Zero looked around for a moment and took a deep breath.

"Well…" he started. "If I tell you… will you promise not to tell anyone? **Especially** not Jinx!"

Smoke did a quick military salute and clicked his boots together. "You can count on me! I'll tell nobody, not a soul!"

Zero nodded. "You see… it's like this. Robin's probably told you already that I'm not from here, and….

**Meanwhile, down in Jinx's Room…**

Jinx awoke with a startled cry. Her room was pretty high up in the Tower; most of the others were down below… and she had heard Smoke's gunshot loud and clear.

She got up, wearing a purple nightgown and black slippers, and walked up to the roof to investigate the noise. She was nervous… why would anyone be shooting? What were they shooting at?

She walked up to the door leading to the roof… and saw that it was cracked open. Somebody was up there… so, she pressed her ear against the crack and listened. Soon, she could make out a pair of familiar voices… Sub-Zero and Smoke.

"… Ah, I gotcha…. You're just getting' a li'l homesick, eh?" she heard Smoke say.

"Yeah… I guess you could say that…" Zero responded.

Jinx gasped. She had noticed Zero behaving oddly lately… was this why? Did he regret coming to live with them? The thought broke her heart…

"Hm… Maybe you oughta go back for a visit?"

"**No**!" he responded quickly.

Smoke looked startled by the outburst. "Geeze! Just a suggestion…"

"I… I'm sorry…" Zero whispered. "It's just that… I don't want to leave Jinx by herself… I may love my homeland… but not nearly as much as I love her…."

Jinx blushed and sighed softly in relief. 'He **does** love me… I knew it.' She felt guilty and foolish for ever having doubted him.

"Yeah, well… I'm glad this rifle turned out so well!"

Jinx huffed angrily. 'That damn, trigger-happy moron! He was testing out a gun this time of night? What was he thinking?' He had gotten her all alarmed over nothing…

"Well, I better get some shuteye… don't get too bent out of shape, y'hear man?"

"I won't… Good night, Smoke."

"Right… G'night Zero…"

Jinx, realizing she was about to be caught, gasped and ran back to her room before Smoke found her. She closed her door softly behind her, and lay back down in bed.

"…Zero… why didn't you just tell me?" she wondered to herself. If he was homesick… she was just going to have to do something about it. Sub-Zero had saved her life, and made her feel like no one else ever had… the **last** thing she wanted was for him to be unhappy.

Meanwhile, Sub-Zero was still sitting on the roof… he sighed softly and looked up at the pure, white moon up in the inky black sky.

"So… _En persedel skall uppsagd saktnedd, Je avant de aanwinst le forskjillig voorwerp_…" He whispered sadly in his native language. And then, he sat quietly another few minutes before getting up, and going back to his room.

(A/N: **En persedel skall uppsagd saktnedd, Je avant de aanwinst le forskjillig voorwerp '**To gain one thing, I must lose another…')

**The Next Morning…**

Blackfire groaned softly as her eyelids fluttered open. At first, she was surrounded by a spinning blur of colors… and then, things began to come into focus. She was… in a… hospital room? That's what it seemed like…

She looked down and saw she was lying in bed and she had presumably been unconscious for a while.

Then, she remembered everything that had happened. Fleeing to Earth again… hiding in an old, rundown warehouse… she had gotten horribly sick… and then, a boy found her… and her sister, and her friends…

She went over everything that the boy… wasn't his name, Smoke?… everything the boy had said to her.

"He doesn't know anything about me!" she hissed angrily. But, deep inside… she knew everything he had said to be true…

_'They thought you were a freak, is that it?'_ Smoke's words echoed in her mind. _'Believe it or not… I've been called a freak, too.'_

She wanted to be angry. She really did. But… she couldn't… and she didn't know why not.

Her first priority right now should have been to find Starfire and kill her… but she couldn't get the young, brown-haired gunman out of her head long enough to focus on that…

"Heheheh… mornin' Sleeping Beauty…" somebody chuckled from the other side of the room.

Blackfire looked over to see Smoke himself standing there, guns, saw, and all.

"_You_…"

"Uh-huh… you were expecting somebody else?"

Enraged by his sarcasm, she flew out of bed with glowing eyes, intent on taking him out… but he calmly stepped to one side, and she hurtled right by… she hit the wall dead on and slid off comically. Smoke chuckled to himself and stepped over to her.

"You really shouldn't do that…" he said softly. "You'll **hurt** yourself again."

She looked up with blazingly angry eyes again and tried to lay him out with a punch… but he caught her fist and held it there effortlessly, despite her strength. She stared in disbelief… a Tamaranean shouldn't have been able to stop that punch, much less a little Earthling!

"… (_Sigh_)… Why do want to fight?" Smoke said sadly.

"… You _don't_?" she asked, confused and suprised.

"Hell no! Look, I just came down here to check on you, and you happened to wake up while I was down here… about time, too. You've been out for a long time."

Blackfire lowered her fist and looked around. "…Where am I?" she asked after a moment.

"The infirmary."

"…_Infirmary_?"

"You know, in Titan's Tower."

Blackfire stared at him dully. "So how long?" she asked glumly after a minute.

Smoke sat down on a bed and stared at her, cocking his head to one side. "How long 'till what?" he asked.

"Until they ship me back to Centauri-Space Prison…?" she finished.

Smoke stared at her incredulously for a moment and then burst out laughing. Blackfire screamed angrily at him.

"What the Hell is so funny? Do you realize I'm going to be **executed** when they get me back there?" she demanded. "Why do you think I escaped? Then again… you'll probably be glad to see me go… you'd be more than happy to have me killed. Maybe, if you're nice to the Centauri officers, they'll even let you shoot me yourself!" She spat.

Smoke held up his hands defensively and cringed. "Calm down, calm down… fact is, you aren't going back to prison… You're going to be staying with us."

Her eyes quit glowing, and she stared wide-eyed with mouth agape.

"…Y-you're serious?" she stammered.

"Sure. We weren't gonna put you in prison with you sick and all… so we brought you back here, and Cy fixed you up with some medicine. He tells me it had some sort of vaccine in it, too. You won't need to worry about getting sick like that again."

She blinked a couple times, and then fell back down on the bed. She stared down for a seconds… then, she looked up and tried to speak, but she had a hard time getting the words out.

"…Why… do you…. Trust me?" she said slowly.

Smoke just shrugged. "Well, for one thing, I'm sure if you'd just try to reconcile with your sister, you'd find you wouldn't even want to hurt her anymore. Star's a forgiving person, after all."

"Forgive…? **Forgive**? **_SHE_** should be the one asking **_ME_** for forgiveness!" Blackfire snarled.

"Well then, go ask her for it." Smoke said nonchalantly. "I think she'd be happy to oblige."

Blackfire narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "… What the Hell makes you think they'll be so glad to forgive me?"

"Why wouldn't they?" he countered.

She had no answer ready for that. She just stared some more, and opened her mouth as if about to say something, but then she shut it again.

"Just go talk to them… trust me." Smoke urged with a nod.

Blackfire took a deep breath, and closed her eyes.

"… Maybe….later. I need…. To think…" she mumbled.

"Well then, I'll leave you alone. Just feel free to come out." He said. He began walking out the door and stopped. "Oh, yeah…. One last thing: I didn't mean anything by that 'Sleeping Beauty' crack earlier… although you **_are_** beautiful."

Blackfire's face went extremely red, and she looked at him with an expression that could have either been rage or embarrassment.

Before she could reply, he walked out of the infirmary and closed the door shut behind him.

"**Oh yeah**…" he muttered to himself with a pleased grin. "…**She digs me**."

And with that, he walked back off to other parts of the Tower, whistling as he went.

**That is the end of that chapter. Next chapter: Blackfire reconciles with the Titans…sort've... and Sub-Zero and Smoke find a mysterious statue underground… a statue that looks like… a girl?**

**Anyway, lots and lots of reviews would be nice... you can never have to many reviews. **

**P.S. Doc. MeGot… what's your E-Mail address? I didn't know, so I couldn't E-Mail you… **

**The Mad Phantom…**


	7. Chapter Six

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans aren't my property._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Six**_

Smoke stood at the doorway to Star's room. Taking a deep breath to fortify himself, he lifts a hand and knocks carefully. After a moment, there is the sound of footsteps and the door swings slowly open…

"Oh…er… Friend Smoke! Is there something you require of me?" she asked softly. Ever since they'd brought Blackfire back to the Tower, she had been a little more… repressed, than usual.

"Yeah, I got some good news…" he began with a small grin. "Your sister woke up."

Her eyes widened. "She is awake? That is good… I was beginning to grow worried about her."

"Yeah, but there's something else… I think you should probably go down and see her…"

"Erm…All right… but why do you say that?"

"Well… I told her to feel free to come out when she feels ready, but…." He took a deep breath and looked for the right words. "… I don't think she'll be ready for a while. So, maybe you should go ahead and go talk to her."

Starfire sighed softly. "Smoke… do you think she is still angry with me?"

"Chances are she is… a bit." He admitted. "But you guys are **_never_** gonna get along if one of you doesn't say **_something_** to the other."

"You are right!" Starfire proclaimed with a nod. "I **_MUST_** go to her and attempt to make amends with her!" she sounded very… **determined**.

"Go for it!." Smoke said bracingly.

After finishing his talk with Star, he made his way down to Zero's room, and knocked.

Zero opened the door, coming out in his white robes, and broke into a grin upon seeing who had knocked.

"Smoke! Good to see ya! You needed something?"

"Well…" A sly smile spread across the gunman's face. "… How'd you like to go out today?"

Zero blinked in confusion. "…Out?"

"Yeah! Y'know, into town. I wanna look around a bit. Now that I'm not army property anymore, I can finally have some fun… and besides…" Smoke lowered his voice. "… I think this place is about to have some… _family conflicts_, if you catch my drift."

"Oh… Starfire and Blackfire?" the swordsman asked.

Smoke nodded. "Exactly. And I think we should give them some privacy… I've already asked the others not to go near the infirmary for a while…"

"I see… well… I guess that sounds like a good idea." Zero said with a casual shrug. "Let me just grab my armor… _just in case_." The gunner nodded the affirmative. Smoke himself was a firm believer in being prepared, so he wasn't about to stop Zero from wearing his armor. Besides, he himself wasn't going **_anywhere_** without his guns and his saw…

"Y'wanna come in for a second?" Zero asked.

"… Oh,…sure...thanks."

Smoke followed Zero into his room, and looked at the surroundings.

His room had white walls that had been lightly sponge painted pale blue. A T.V. sat in the corner, and a large bed with teal sheets and pillows, and a silver blanket.

Several paintings were on the wall, most of them of ocean scenes and snowy landscapes… although a couple were portraits of people with white hair and red eyes…

A large shelf just above his bed had a model ship inside a large bottle… and although Smoke didn't realize it, the model was an exact, miniature replica of Zero's ship, _The Fryse Wyrm_.

On a wall near the T.V. were three plaques: one small, one medium-sized, and one big. The Small on had Sub-Zero's shield, **Snevakt**… the medium sized one had his blade, **Eviglasere**, and the last, huge plaque had his new war hammer, **Hiverzbyrde**. Also, there was a large, leather case with a strap sitting below the hammer.

On top of a white, wooden podium in a corner… was his armor, and also… a small, blue-and-emerald amulet that was… **_glowing_**.

Zero retrieved his armor and put it on quickly. He walked over to his closet and opened it up; inside of it were several suits of baggy white robe-suits and blue capes with fluffy white trim, and a few gray belts with pockets. Zero grabbed a cape and a belt and put them on as well. Then, he walked over to the podium, and grabbed the small amulet. Carefully, he placed it in a pocket on his belt.

Sub-Zero got his sword, shield, and hammer. He put the sword scabbard at his side, strapped the shield to his arm, and stored the war hammer in the leather case, which he strapped to his back, concealed by his large, flowing cape.

"Okay… that's about it. I'm ready." Zero said finally.

Smoke snickered. "Yeah, it took ya long enough. And what was with the glowing amulet, anyway?"

Sub-Zero took the small talisman out of his belt, and held it up.

"… You mean, **_this_**?"

"Yeah. What makes it glow like that?"

"… That, my friend… is a _looooong_ story. Come on, I'll tell you on our way to town…"

**_In The Infirmary…_**

"…Dammit… what am I supposed to do _now_?" Blackfire sighed heavily to herself.

She was debating on whether she should go out there and hope that this wasn't all some elaborate trick, with Smoke setting her up for an ambush the second she stepped outside… or maybe she should just go back to sleep. That would be the easiest thing… she just didn't know what to do.

Smoke… had acted so kind to her… and he'd had absolutely no reason, but he did it anyway. She'd tried to kill him, for goodness sake… but he didn't seem to care about that at all. He'd even called her… _beautiful_. Had he been serious about **that**, too…?

Blackfire mentally bitch-slapped herself.

"What the Hell am I _thinking_? Forget about him!" she muttered angrily to herself… although her cheeks went fiercely red as she did so. She just couldn't help thinking about the odd gunman who'd helped her to her feet back in that basement, who had tried to talk things out when his friends were ready to fight…

Faintly, Blackfire heard the sound of a door opening. However, she was too absorbed within her own thoughts to notice. She realized that someone else was in the room with her, only when she heard a soft, familiar voice…

"…. Sister…?"

Blackfire gasped and recoiled violently, then jerked her head around to the source of the voice…

She looked at the entrance and saw that Starfire was standing there fidgeting nervously…

"… What do _you_ want?" Blackfire asked softly, narrowing her eyes.

Star flinched slightly at her scathing tone, but took a deep breath and answered calmly.

"… I merely… came to talk." She said managing a hesitant smile.

Blackfire just stared suspiciously for a moment, then sighed heavily and flopped back down in the bed onto her side; her back was turned to Star.

"..About what? Which Tamaranean prison would be most suitable for a high-threat prisoner such as myself?" she asked sarcastically. Star flinched again…

"N-no…." she said with some difficulty.

"Then what?"

"….." Starfire was silent…

"Oh, come on… **_spit it out_**!"

"… Was _that_ why?"

Blackfire looked over in confusion and irritation. "…Huh? Was that why _what_?"

"Because… is that why you hate me? Because they… treated me preferentially?"

Blackfire cut her eyes toward Star, and gave her a bitter, scathing sneer. "…What, you thought it was just my time of the month, or something?" She said sarcastically. Then her eyes narrowed to slits and her voice became a hiss. "…Why the Hell, **_shouldn't_** I hate you…?"

Starfire looked down and said nothing. Blackfire was about to make a smart remark again, until… she realized Starfire's shoulders were trembling. She stared incredulously… was she…. Crying? Sure enough, Star looked up with misty eyes, looking as though she was fighting back tears.

"_S_**-**_sister_… I do not _understand_… Why… why did you never simply… _tell_ me?" She mumbled softly and hesitantly, her voice but a haunted whisper.

"… I couldn't explain to you why not… there isn't enough time." Blackfire muttered, trying to weasel her way out of the conversation. "So why don't you just get out of here and go about your pointless, little business?"

For the first time, Starfire looked brave and determined. She sat down on a cot adjacent to Blackfire's, and said firmly: "No. I **refuse** to leave this infirmary until we can sit down and speak civilly to one another… as sisters should do."

Blackfire was genuinely surprised… and a little startled. She looked over at her sister's set expression and sighed softly in resignation. Clearly, she couldn't win this argument. There was a long, silent pause, in which only the ticking of a nearby clock in the infirmary could be heard.

"…**Fine**." Blackfire spat, after a moment. "If I'm going to talk about it, then listen up…"

**_Meanwhile, back with Sub-Zero and Smoke…_**

"This… is… friggin'…. _Delicious_." The gunner moaned in sheer ecstasy.

Zero and Smoke were at a local deli, sampling some of the day's special. Sub-Zero had ordered a large portion of spaghetti, and smoke had gotten a deep-dish pizza with all the toppings.

"Mm-hm…" Zero chuckled. "I'm sure it beats taking food in through a needle…" he said, taking another bite of spaghetti.

"**_Hell, yes_**! Finally! … I know it sounds stupid… but it's just so… _cool_… to be able to actually **taste** what I'm eating…" Smoke said slowly, with a smile spreading across his face.

"It's not stupid… it's natural." The knight corrected… Zero looked at his friend with a strange expression. "… Why didn't they just… like, wake you up out of that tube, and let you eat normally?" he asked hesitantly.

"Well, they fed me right before the PTT's, so my strength would be up… and by _fed_, I mean they pumped nutrients into me by injection." Smoke explained.

The knight blinked in confusion. "Err… _PTT's_?"

"_Pain Tolerance Tests_." The gunman explained nonchalantly.

"… They… tested your _pain_ tolerance?"

"Yeah… y'know, they'd strap me to the table and all. Then, they'd just poke me, or prod me, or stick me with knives, or break a bone or two… to find out how much I could handle, you see." The most disturbing thing was the unconcerned tone Smoke used when talking about this… you'd think he was talking about the weather.

Sub-Zero stared in horror, and literally dropped his fork, a piece of spaghetti noodle dangling from his mouth.

"_Oh_ _my_ **_God_**…" he stammered softly. "… Are you **_serious_**?"

"Yeah… as you can tell, laboratory life **sucks**." Smoke mused with a chuckle.

Sub-Zero shook his head and shut his eyes tight. "That's just… so… **_callous_**…"

"Don't worry about it, pal." Smoke said quickly. "It's in the past, right?"

"… Yes… you're right, it is."

Sub-Zero was about to say something else, when a noise distracted him… the deli's entrance door slamming. Then, a commanding voice rang out through the whole place, causing all the diners and staff to go silent in surprise and fear.

"Everyone, please remain calm! This is a search, on behalf of the U.S. military! Please remain seated and quiet until further notice!"

Zero and Smoke's heads turned slowly around… and they saw a whole squad of Special Ops. Soldiers walking through the front door, armed from tooth to toe…

"…Z-Zero…" Smoke moaned softly…

"I see them…" the knight replied… he suddenly seemed to be shaking with anger. In fact, his glass of ice water shattered in his fist after a minute after he had squeezed it too hard.

"… _N**-**No_…." Smoke stammered. "…How the Hell did they… **find** me?"

"I don't know…" Zero grunted, with suppressed rage darkening his usually calm voice. "… But I'm glad to see they did…"

Smoke looked over in his friend in surprise and hurt. "_Huh_? But _why_?"

Smoke gasped and shrunk back when Zero looked over and he realized… Sub-Zero's eyes were suddenly glowing pale, icy blue.

"… So I can **_kill_** them…" he hissed ominously.

Zero grabbed the hilt of his sword and made sure his shield was strapped on tight… and he started to get up.

"No! Zero, not here!" the young gunman whispered urgently, "There are people here! They could get hurt…. Just take some deep breaths; calm down…"

Zero shut his eyes and took in a few, deep, rattling breaths… and when he opened his eyes again, they were their normal red color.

"… You're right… thanks…" he said. "I… I'm sorry… I have a tendency to…. Lose my temper, sometimes…" he sounded regretful after losing control.

"No problem, buddy… but listen…" now Smoke looked nervous again. "We're gonna have to find **some** way out of here…."

The soldiers were going from table to table and inspecting the crowd… and they were getting closer to the two heroes by the minute…

"Quick! Under here!" Zero hissed suddenly, and he pulled Smoke down under the table.

Quickly, they started crawling silently from table to table… the tables were very tightly packed together, with only a couple feet or so of space. Zero and Smoke were able to sneak out that way.

"Don't make any loud noises…" Zero advised in a whisper.

"Right! Gotcha… I'll be perfectly quiet!" Smoke whispered with a nod. "You'll never even know I'm here… I'll be so quiet, you'll think I'm a comatose butterfly!"

"…(Sigh)… J-just… be quiet…." The knight said with exasperation.

For a while, their plan worked flawlessly. Until…

"Okay… I think we're home free…" Zero said in relief.

They crawled out from under the last table, and the back exit was right in front of them. The stood up slowly and crept over… just a little farther… another foot or so…

**_"YOU THERE! HALT!"_**

They both froze dead in their tracks instantly and simultaneously.

"Aw… Son of a…." Smoke muttered.

"…So close, and yet… so far." Zero sighed.

"**_Stop or we'll shoot_**!"

The duo turned their heads to look at each other.

"Well… shall we retreat?" Zero asked casually.

"…Aw, Hell… why not?" Smoke grunted with a shrug.

Then, they broke into a blind run out the door, and the troops took off after them.

"This way!" Zero hollered and ran toward the street.

"I'm right behind ya!"

They ran out and took off down the sidewalk of the street, with a platoon of soldiers raining stunner-gun bolts at them. They ran for several blocks, while making blind turns into alleyways and side streets… but they just couldn't shake their pursuers.

"Damn! We can't fight 'em…" Smoke panted, still running. "There're people all over the place… not a good place for a battle."

"Then we'll lead them out of the city!" Zero said, panting and wheezing just as hard as Smoke. "There are only a couple more blocks until we get to the outskirts of the city… nothing out there but open country."

"Sounds like a plan to me!" Smoke laughed with a nod.

"Then follow me!"

And he did. They ran down a couple more blocks, just as Zero had said… and sure enough, a large street sign, saying… 'Jump City Limits' 

They ran past with the soldiers still in pursuit… and after more running, ended up in open country outside the city.

At that point, the two guys stopped running and turned to face their puruers…

"Alrighty then, losers…" Smoke chuckled. "I think we've been running enough… wouldn't you say, Zero?"

"Oh, yeah… WAY more than enough."

"I think a little…" Smoke paused to think. "**_Ass Kicking_** is in order."

Zero snorted. "A **_LITTLE_**?"

With that, the knight reached for his new hammer, Hiverzbyrde… and Smoke whipped out his shotgun and chainsaw.

"You have until the count of three to drop your weapons! One… Two… "

**_BLAM!_**

The grunt slumped to the ground dead, hit by a direct shotgun blast.

"…Three." Smoke chuckled with a slight smirk.

Needing no further pretense, the soldiers immediately opened fire with stun bolts again. Smoke ducked behind a boulder to avoid the shots. Zero, however, took to the offensive.

"**_Rrrr_**…. **_DIIIIIEEEE_**!" the knight bellowed, loosing a furious, roaring battle-cry after wards and dashing at the fools with his warhammer lifted above his head.

He ran forward in a straight line, screaming the whole time… and every stunner shot that came at him was either dodged, deflected with the hammer, or just ricocheted off his armor.

With a massive, frighteningly-powerful swipe, five soldiers went flying and landed on the ground several yards with a loud 'Pow!', most of their bones broken and their body armor destroyed.

Another soldier drew a knife from his belt and approached Zero from behind… but without turning around, Zero jabbed backwards with his hammer handle, hitting the jerk square in the gut. Then, he brought the head back up and hit the guy with an uppercut swing that snapped his neck and launched him into the air.

Meanwhile, Smoke was up close and personal, as well. He charged a soldier and cut him into three sections with a couple, quick swings of his chainsaw. Then, he whipped around and filled another guy full of triple aught buckshot with a swift pull of his shotgun's hair trigger. A couple stun bolts almost nailed Smoke, but he blocked them with his saw blade and retaliated with a shotgun blast that sent the guy reeling back onto the ground, dead as the dirt he landed on.

Zero had put away Hiverzbyrde and was now fighting with Eviglasere and Snevakt. He dodged the stuns with ease, and stabbed or decapitated anybody that got close enough with his sword. Two more soldiers drew their combat knives and charged him from either side. The one on the left, ran straight into the blade of Zero's sword, effectively impaling him and taking him out instantly… the one on the right, had his skull bashed in by Zero's shield, letting off a painful '_Clang_!' that killed him. Zero whipped around and let loose another war cry, jogging toward a lone thug. The thug panicked, and started shooting his stun guy in a frenzy… but Zero's shield, Snevakt, deflected each and every attack. When the knight reached him, he bashed him in the gut with his shield, causing him to double over… Zero then kicked him in the chin with a heavy, boot-clad foot, and sliced him 13 times in rapid succession, killing him quickly.

Smoke had changed weapons as well… he was now wielding dual .44 magnums… he swiftly let fly with a barrage of bullets, and took out several troops running at him, and then, when he had to reload, one of the soldiers decided to take advantage of that. He charged while Smoke was reloading, bringing up his stun gun for a shot… but Smoke suddenly leapt forward with a punch and knocked him out cold, and then finished reloading… upon which point, he shot the unconscious loser right through the head with his freshly loaded revolvers.

Now, Sub-Zero had sheathed all weapons, and instead let loose a flurry of frost-rays, turning the troops into ice sculptures… he was tired and wanted to get this over with quick.

With all the soldiers defeated, the battle was over… or was it?

Zero didn't notice in his exhaustion… but the only surviving soldier left was sneaking up on him, knife out… getting ready and moving in for the kill…

… _**KAAAOOOOOOOPPPPOOOOOOAAAWWWSSHH!**_

Sub-Zero gasped hoarsely and wheeled around at the sound of a loud, echoing rifle shot… and saw a soldier standing there with a combat knife in hand… and also with blood splurting out of a smoking hole in his forehead. The soldier slumped to his knees… and then thumped forward onto the ground face first, and adding insult to injury, he ended up landing on his own knife. He was dead as a doornail.

Sub-Zero, stunned and confused, looked in the distance and saw Smoke standing there, grinning and looking through the scope of a long Sniper Rifle that was smoking from the barrel. The gunner took the gun down and put it back in it's large, leather holster, which was tied onto Smoke's side, concealed under his black-leather jacket.

They jogged across to each other, and regrouped.

"… Well… we beat 'em." Smoke said, clearly tired.

"Yeah…." Zero mumbled back softly.

Smoke then noticed something unusual… most of the bodies lying around from the battle… were equipped with guns that they hadn't even used…

"What the Hell…?" Smoke muttered questioningly.

He bent over and took one of the guns… it looked similar to the stun guns… except a large, clear tank was attached to the top, and it had a nozzle rather than a barrel. The tank was filled with what looked like faintly glowing green goo sloshing around. A hose connected the tank to the gun's nozzle.

Smoke had never seen anything like it.

He aimed it and pulled the trigger… and the nozzle instantly spewed out voluminous amounts of the goo… which instantly began to sizzle and formed a bubbling, smoking, green puddle that was dissolving the very ground…

"Damn… an _acid_ gun!" Smoke realized.

"… I don't understand… why didn't they use those?" Zero asked.

"I dunno… maybe they were saving them as a last resort?"

"Yeah… and we never gave them a chance for a last resort, eh?" Zero chuckled darkly.

"You right…."

They turned around suddenly as they heard a faint cracking noise… In the ground…

The hole the acid puddle had melted in the ground… was cracking and widening… very rapidly.

"Uh oh…." Smoke whispered. "Not good… **Definitely** not good!"

"Run!" Zero yelled.

But they never got the chance.

The ground, weakened by the acid, abruptly caved in under them, and they fell into the darkness with a couple of startled screams…

_**Back at Titan's Tower…**_

Beast Boy was in his room asleep… and he was having a dream…

Terra had just sacrificed herself after the battle with Slade… she was now nothing more than a stone statue. B.B. heard his friends talking around him, but didn't really comprehend them… all he could hear was a slight ringing in his ears… and echoes of Terra's last, frightened, but determined, scream as the lava had covered her…

She had sacrificed herself… for B.B. … for the Titans… for Jump City….

For everyone.

And what had she gotten in return? A rock prison, that's what. She had suffered so much.

Of course, she had made mistakes! Awful mistakes… but who hasn't? Didn't she deserve another chance, just like everyone else…?

But now, she would never have it… and that hurt Beast Boy more than any flood of molten lava would have…

He had to fight the urge to scream in grief and frustration. It was just so… unfair!

The shape shifter sighed… and walked up to the imprisoned and motionless Terra, her beautiful face forever frozen in the same, unchanging expression…

Looking at the inscription they had carved below her, the young hero could contain himself no longer… he fell to his knees and a tear ran slowly down his green-tinted face.

And that's when he awoke.

Sitting up ramrod-straight in bed, he looked wide-eyed and blinking around his messy room.

"…J-Just… a dream…." He mumbled under his breath. He groaned softly and buried his head in his hands with a long sigh. "…the same dream… always this one… what does it _mean_?"

Giving up on the unsolvable riddle, he shook his head and laid back down, resuming his nap… hoping to God that the old memories wouldn't resurface again…

_**Underground, with Sub-Zero and Smoke…**_

There was a slight muffled cough as a white haired knight pulled himself out from under some rubble…

"…Ugh… Smoke? Smoke, where are you?" he hollered around… and he heard more coughing from his left. He ran over and saw Smoke climbing out from under the debris, as well.

"…_Damn_… remind me never to test out guns on the ground again…" he wheezed.

"Don't worry about it… we'll find a way out…"

After a quick discussion, they decided to split up and look for a way back to the surface.

The underground cave they had wound up in… was huge. And the place had a large amount of ash all over the stone floors, as if a volcano had erupted in there, or something…

Zero was giving up on finding a way out after the first thirty minutes of searching… and then he sighed and turned around to go back… and saw something out of the corner of his eye…

There, on a small, stone platform that stretched out from a cliff… was a person standing there.

"Hey! Hey, you there! Do you know how to get out of here?" Zero waved his hands and shouted to get their attention.

The silhouette of the person remained silent and motionless.

He sighed and ran over, thinking they hadn't heard him… and that's when he gasped and realized that it wasn't a person at all.

It was a statue. A statue of a girl with long hair, and wearing a strange metallic armor-suit…

"…What… the?" Sub-Zero whispered.

"Hey! Hey, Zero! You found a way…" Smoke was running up behind him, but he stopped when he noticed the statue. "…Out… yet? … What in God's name is **_THAT_**?"

"It looks like… a statue…" Sub-Zero said slowly.

Smoke slapped himself in the forehead and snorted. "No way, Freud…"

"Okay, okay… stupid answer… I don't know what it is." Zero sighed.

"Or why it's here. I mean… this is an odd location for a statue, huh?"

"You're right… y'know, it looks almost like some kind of, like…. Memorial, or something." Sub-Zero's eyes traveled downward, and saw words etched into the statue. "Hey look! Writing!"

"Swell…" Smoke said, halfheartedly. "Look, I'm gonna go look for a way out… you can stay and try to read that if you want."

"Hmm… Tiara? No, wait… Turnip? Damn… this writing is worn… it's hard to make out. And it's so dark down here…maybe it's… Tuna? Turn? Tree? Something like that…"

With a sigh, Smoke left his friend trying to read the writing… he looked down and noticed he was still carrying the acid gun from earlier… how he had held onto it was beyond him, but…

"Heh… a lot of friggin' good **_THIS_** thing did us… Aw, to Hell with it!" he growled, tossing the thing over his shoulder.

"T-T-Tara? No, wait… **_TERRA_**! That's it, Terra! That's what it says!" Zero announced, but gasped and ducked to avoid the flying gun…

It hit the statue and the tank shattered, spilling acid all over the statue.

"What the--? Be careful! You almost hit me!"

"S-sorry…"

They looked back and watched the statue dissolve… but were startled when a blindingly bright golden glow began to emanate from the cracks forming in it…

"Uhhh… Zero? What the Hell's goin' on?" Smoke stuttered nervously.

"I… I don't know!" The knight responded in a panicked voice.

The entire statue suddenly exploded apart and a golden light filled the entire cavern… the force of the blast knocked Smoke and Zero off their feet.

When the light died down, they groaned and got back up…

"Damn… that hurt." The young gunner moaned, rubbing his temples.

"What just… hit us?" Zero asked, perplexed.

They looked over to the remnants of the statue and got a real shock…

Where the statue had been… there was a girl, slumped over on the stone platform. She seemed to be taking in deep breaths of air, as if she hadn't breathed in a long time…. She looked up and the duo was struck by the sight of long, blonde hair and a pair of bright blue eyes that darted wildly around in confusion.

"What… in the name of…?" Zero began, but he couldn't finish.

"Dude… she looks… like the statue!" Smoke said, his eyes about to bug out of his head.

The girl noticed the two tall, armed guys in front of her and shrunk back with a gasp as if afraid.

Smoke was too shocked… and a little scared… to move. Sub-Zero however slowly began to approach the girl.

"…Umm… Miss? Madame? Are you all right?"

The girl made a soft noise, and shrunk back again, curling up in a fetal position.

"We ain't here to hurt you…." Smoke said, finding his voice again. "But… who are you, anyway? And… were you that… statue?" Smoke knew that sounded insane, but… it was the only possible explanation.

The young girl looked back up, and spoke with a wavering voice…

"Who are… you?"

"Well… my name is Sub-Zero… just call me Zero, if you'd prefer…" the knight began, and then he motioned over towards his friend. "And that's my friend, Smoke… but what's your name?"

The girl, seeing that the two boys meant her no harm, took a deep breath and answered truthfully…

"…_Terra_."

_**Sheeeeees Baaaaaaaack…. **_

_**But seriously, That's the end of this chapter. I'm deeply sorry about how long it took me to update, but some odd circumstances forced me into a position where I was without the use of a computer for a few days…**_

_**Anyway… Next Chapter: Sub-Zero and Smoke take Terra back to the Tower… how will Beast Boy react? And also, how did Star and Black's little chat turn out? And what is Jinx planning to do about Sub-Zero's homesickness?**_

_**Reviews are awesome, so please take a moment to submit one if you don't mind…**_

**_-The Mad Phantom…_**


	8. Chapter Seven

_Disclaimer: Nothin's changed; I still don't own the Teen Titans._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Seven.**_

It was getting late. And Jinx was troubled... very much so.

It had been a while; Sub-Zero and Smoke still weren't back yet… they'd been gone much longer than she had thought they would.

Earlier, Sub-Zero had dropped by and said something about going out with Smoke for a while… but that had been hours ago, and he wasn't back yet.

Of course, she had done as Smoke had requested and had stayed away from the infirmary… maybe, Star and Blackfire would be done in there, one of these days… but she wasn't worried about that right now. She just wondered why Zero wasn't home yet…

"What's keeping him?" She wondered to herself for the nineteenth time that night.

She wasn't sure if Sub-Zero fully realized it, but he meant the world to her. Of course, he realized that she loved him… with all her heart. But she wasn't sure he knew just how central to her life he was. There was very little else besides Zero and the Titans that mattered to her, anymore. They were _**IT**_. And Zero, no offense to the rest of her friends, was the top priority.

The idea… no, the very _possibility_, of his getting hurt in some way terrified her. She had come agonizingly close to losing him twice before… Needless to say, it was a feeling she didn't care to endure again.

While he had been gone, the pale skinned sorceress had been doing other things… like thinking. Thinking about what she could do to help Zero… and she came up with only one idea. She had discussed it with Robin earlier, and he'd said it was perfectly all right with him, as long as they weren't gone too long….

But she'd never get the chance to tell him if he didn't hurry up and come back. She'd gotten down a couple books and tried to pass the time that way, and after that she'd tried watching some T.V. It didn't work. So now, she lay on her stomach on the bed, gazing glumly at the slowly ticking clock on the wall. Her pinkish, feline eyes unconsciously followed the second hand as it gradually made it's rounds around the clock face. She sighed deeply.

The sorceress got up, and walked over to a small, ornate chest on her desk. It was deep, purple velvet, with ruby edges. Zero had gotten it for her about a month and a half ago, as a surprise gift. She'd loved it, and loved it still. With a trembling hand, she reached down to it, and carefully opened it up.

There, lying inside the chest, was the rose. The eternal-ice rose that Sub-Zero had given her two months ago, just before the return from Norblitz. It's brilliant sheen, and the sparkling reflections that it held seemed to be even more beautiful than the real-life objects they were reflecting.

The witch reached down and touched it gently… and shivered slightly at it's coldness… it was amazing to her, that after all this time in a heated room, and inside a chest… it was still frozen, still solid, still cold. But despite it's coldness, it's beauty more than made up for it. She still had no idea how he'd gotten it, but she really didn't care…

She sat down and stared at it. It was a comforting sight right now, because it reminded her of Sub-Zero. She knew that her worries were probably unfounded, and that Zero was probably just fine… but she couldn't help it. She had to be worried about him.

"Sub-Zero… where **_are_** you….?" Jinx sighed sadly and fearfully, running a slightly shaky hand through her bubble-gum pink hair.

She went back to the bed, laid back down, and turned her slender form over onto it's side, and tried to get some rest…

_Meanwhile…_

Robin sat in the living room, lying on the couch. He, like Jinx, had been told by Smoke to stay away from the infirmary. But he, also like Jinx, was worried… he was worried about Starfire.

"… This is taking too long…" he murmured. "… What if Blackfire went berserk and _hurt_ her again?" He demanded to himself. If he ever let any permanent harm come to Star… he didn't know how he'd ever live with it. And if Blackfire _did_ attack her… he doubted he could run from here to the infirmary fast enough to help.

He, personally, didn't trust Blackfire as far as he could throw her… well, he could actually throw her pretty far if he ever got his hands on her; he was stronger than he looked… but you get what I'm saying.

Robin pulled a birdarang out of his belt, and began twirling it absent-mindedly between his fingers. He really didn't even realize he was doing it… it was just that whenever Robin was nervous, he had trouble sitting still. So, he had to do _something_…

He was still kicking himself mentally for ever agreeing to take Blackfire back to the Tower… but that couldn't be helped. After all, Star had asked him, and he had found out that it was becoming increasingly difficult to say no to Starfire…

"For _Smoke's_ sake… Star had better not get hurt." Robin snapped grimly.

But, for right now… he decided to go against his better judgment and trust the gunman. Speaking of which… where **WAS** he, anyway? He'd left much, much earlier with Zero, to go **'out'**. And he wasn't back yet.

And how had he convinced Zero to stay out this late? Sub-Zero should know better than anyone how upset Jinx could get…

But this wasn't really important. The only thought on the Boy Wonder's mind right now was Starfire.

Robin sighed softly and did the only thing he could: he kept waiting.

While all this was going on, Raven was in her room, feeling just as uneasy as the other two… but for reasons even **she** didn't know.

She could not shake the feeling that something big was about to happen… something drastic and unexpected. Not necessarily a bad thing, but… she couldn't be sure.

She didn't feel like meditating, but she couldn't focus enough to read, either. She was now pacing around her room anxiously. She didn't know how she knew, but… something was definitely going to happen… tonight. She couldn't shake the idea that these feelings were some sort of premonition. She sat down and sighed worriedly, deciding to try to meditate one more time….

"_Azarath Metrion Zinthos… Azarath…Me…Metrionath…Z-Zinthios…_er_, Zin…_"

She couldn't do it… she just wasn't focused enough, and that scared her. Normally, she _was_ the focused one around. Even when everyone else had completely lost their head, Raven had usually remained somewhat calm. But she was no longer in control like that… she was genuinely afraid.

Raven sat down at her mirror and took several deep breaths in an attempt to calm herself.

Something was… wrong. She could feel it. Well, maybe it wasn't _wrong_… maybe, _out-of-the-ordinary_ was a better description.

Deciding that all she could do is sit and wait, she went over to her bed and sat down Indian-style.

"Whatever is going on… I'm going to be ready for it." She promised herself softly.

Someone else in the Tower was having a strange night, as well.

Cyborg was in the garage with the T-Car, and had been making some tune-ups. But for some reason, he couldn't keep his concentration. Afraid that he was going to hurt either himself, or the T-Car, he decided to call it a night and head on up to his room. On the way there, Titan's Tower seemed… unusually quiet, tonight.

Opening the door to his room, Cy went over to a small bookcase, and pulled out a small picture album. He thumbed through the pages…

There was one of him attempting to scrawl out a word in Tamaranean on a chalkboard during one of Star's Tamaranean lessons… obviously, he just ended up making her laugh out loud with his pitiful attempt. But hey, at least he'd made her laugh.

Another photo displayed Cyborg standing triumphantly beside the T.V., with a new high score for a game flashing on the screen… while Beast Boy was standing nearby, sulking. Cy chuckled a bit, and kept turning the pages…

_Ahh_… **here** was one he remembered. The one of him and Jinx while he had been posing as 'Stone', in the H.I.V.E. Academy. They were at the annual dance, and she'd actually asked him to go. He was pretty reluctant at first, but she practically forced him at the time… the main reason that the smile on Stone's face was so strained and hesitant. Actually, he had to admit… she had been nice to him, and they were really good friends now… but he'd never really loved her, so to speak. It was just as well, because he knew she now had someone even better… Sub-Zero.

The knight's name caused Cy to gulp slightly… this was one picture; he hoped Zero would never find out about. Zero was a calm guy, normally…. But Cy knew better than anybody what happens when something **really** rubs him the wrong way…

Turning the page, he stopped short at the next section. It was comprised entirely of pictures B. Boy had allowed him to use in his scrapbook. And they had been taken at the carnival. During B.B.'s date with….

…Her.

Terra.

Cyborg groaned softly and sadly as he remembered her once again. Not that he'd _forgotten_ her, par say…. But he just tried not to dwell on her.

He wondered if Beast Boy thought about her much. Cyborg, being one of B.B.'s closest friends, despite their bickering… personally remembered how torn up he had been over her betrayal.

Cyborg had hated her once… with a passion, mainly because of how much she'd hurt Beast Boy. But after the volcano incident, the battle with Slade… he had discovered he couldn't hate her. Not after the sacrifice she'd made… and it made him wonder if she had really been so bad after all…

Beast Boy was as cheerful, boisterous, and flamboyant as ever. He never really showed the hurt he felt, if he felt it… Cy couldn't be sure. But it was just a feeling that he had, that B. Boy was keeping grief away inside… and that made Cy feel concerned. A lot.

_**Back with Sub-Zero and Smoke…**_

"…My **God**, how much farther is it?" Smoke groaned, reaching down to rub his tired legs.

"Not much… see?" Sub-Zero motioned to the distance, where Titan's Tower loomed up in front of them. "We should be there in a few minutes."

"A-are you s-sure about this?" Terra asked softly. She had already explained to them that she knew the Titans… but she hadn't told them **_how_** she knew them. She hadn't told them that because of her, they were almost killed by Slade.

"Positive… you said you've been acquainted with them, right?" Sub-Zero asked.

"Well… yes…" she started nervously. "But that's the point… I don't think they'd be glad to see me again."

"Huh? Why's that?" Smoke turned his head back and asked interestedly.

"I…" there was no time for Terra to explain. So she decided to dodge the subject again. "I… would… rather not talk about it."

Smoke started to ask more questions, but Zero nudged him and shook his head. "It's her business… if she'd rather not talk about it, don't push her." He whispered to his friend.

"Sorry…" Smoke responded, also in a whisper. "… Just curious."

Sub-Zero nodded and motioned for them to keep walking. "We should hurry." He said, again speaking in a normal tone. "If I don't get back soon, Jinx is gonna **kill** me…"

"How long have you guys known the Titans?" Terra asked. She didn't remember them from… last time.

"Oh, a little more than a couple months…" Zero said slowly.

"About a week and a half." Smoke yawned with a shrug.

"And who's Jinx…?" Terra persisted. She didn't remember any 'Jinx', either.

"My Girlfriend." "His Girlfriend." Zero and Smoke spoke simultaneously.

"…I see… I guess." Terra said hesitantly.

They kept walking a couple more minutes, and finally… they were at the front door of the Tower. Sub-Zero raised a hand, and started to ring the bell, when he saw Terra flinch, as though scared.

"Huh? You all right?" The knight asked, concern showing in his voice.

"I'm… fine, I guess…"

Zero shrugged and pushed the bell button, and sure enough, the reverberating echoes of the bell could be heard on the other side of the door.

After a minute of waiting, the sound of footsteps could be heard… small, quick footsteps. Then, Beast Boy's voice…

"Coming!"

There was the sound of someone fumbling with the locking mechanisms on the doorway, and then the broad double-doors swung open with Beast Boy standing there. He grinned upon seeing his friends standing there.

"It's about time! I thought you guys were gone on a road trip, or somethi—"

Beast Boy froze at the sight of a small, slender shape that was kind of huddled behind Zero and Smoke.

"Uhh… who's your friend, there?" He asked softly. There was something… alarmingly familiar about that shape, but… he couldn't quite…

"Well, we, uh….. We'll explain everything in a few minutes, but to make a long story short: We had some unexpected trouble from the military… wound up falling in a cave… and found this chick." Smoke said.

"Who… who is…it?" Beast Boy persisted.

"… Beast Boy?" a small, hesitant voice issued from behind Sub-Zero's back.

As if he had been punched in the mouth, Beast Boy's green eyes went as wide as CD's, and he staggered backward… he would know that voice **_anywhere_**! But… it **_couldn't_** be…. She was….

"Well… she says she's met you guys before." Sub-Zero stated, a little surprised by the changeling's startled reaction. "So, I'll just let her introduce herself…"

Without warning, Zero moved to the side, revealing his and Smoke's new acquaintance fully for the first time.

There stood none other than Terra, blonde hair falling around her head, which she'd tilted downward in order to stare at the ground… she couldn't bear to make eye contact… her heart pounded nervously in her chest as she prayed he wouldn't immediately attack her right then and there, dismissing her as a traitor, a turncoat, a weasel, a lying little bi—

Her prayers and hopes were interrupted by Beast Boy's soft, hoarse, disbelieving whisper…

"T—Terra….? No… You can't be… she's ….." he couldn't seem to get his thoughts in order, and looked as though he was about to pass out… "You're…. **_Alive_**!"

Terra flinched… she couldn't decide if he meant, "Thank God, she's alive!", or "Damn! She's alive…"

She got her answer… in the form of a pair of arms throwing themselves around her tightly. Stunned, her eyes blinked open and she looked at him. He was shaking violently, and tears were freely running down his eyes… not sad tears… tears of joy. Relief began to flood through her mind, but…. She had to be sure…

"Beast Boy… you don't… you don't… **hate** me?" She asked in a barely audible whisper… her blue eyes silently pleading for him to answer _No_….

He stopped abruptly and looked incredulously at her.

"My _God_, Terra, you're alive, and we're _together_ again! And that's the **only** thing you can ask me?" He said, almost letting out a weak laugh. "Terra… I… I couldn't hate you even if I wanted to!" he all but yelled at her, grasping her in a tight hug again.

Her heart and mind finally released from the terrible fear and nervousness she'd felt since she was freed, her eyes rapidly began to tear up as well… and within a minute, they were both crying happily on each other's shoulder.

… Meanwhile, Sub-Zero and Smoke stood there with anime-style sweat drops…

"Uh… Pal… I ain't _sure_, but… I _think_ maybe we missed something…" Smoke muttered, turning a baffled expression towards the knight.

Sub-Zero turned his equally puzzled face to the gunner and nodded. "I concur 100 percent…" he sighed.

Beast Boy looked up from his and Terra's embrace, smiling widely.

"Guys… I don't know… how to thank you, but…. I just want to know… _how_? How did you get her out of that statue?"

"Err… well… Let's just say, it was just a lucky toss." Smoke said sheepishly.

"Yes… a _very_ lucky one." Zero agreed.

Beast Boy started to ask another question, but was interrupted by footsteps coming down from the stairs…

"Hey! What's going on down here?" Robin asked loudly. "You guys finally got back… what took you so lo—"

Robin froze, and stared at Terra. A second later, Cyborg came down after him, and ended up walking into his back.

"Oof! Robin, what's the deal? You look like you saw a gho—"

He stopped dead mid-sentence as well, staring at Terra with the same expression.

There was a moment of dead, awkward silence…

"_Uhh_…. **Surprise**?" Smoke said in an attempt to lighten up the situation.

"This…… isn't _possible_…" Robin managed to stammer after a minute. He was looking at a person that should, for all intents and purposes, be dead… or might as well have been.

"… Terra? Is that… **_You_**?" Cyborg asked, voice ringing with disbelief.

For the first time since she'd been freed from her stone prison, Terra began to feel a bit of confidence.

"The one and only." She answered with a light smile.

"_Isn't it **great**?" _Beast Boy asked excitedly, nearly jumping up in down in elation._ "Guys, she's **free**! And it's all thanks to **Sub-Zero** and **Smoke**_!"

Two pairs of stunned eyes turned towards the Knight and the Gunman, both of whom were fidgeting nervously.

"Uhh… Are we in trouble?" Smoke asked nervously.

Robin finally found his voice. "**_Trouble_**? Are you **_insane_**? We've been trying to figure out a way to get Terra out of that stone since she was first trapped there! Do you guys realize you just pulled off a miracle?"

"Yeah! Bro, we ought to be thankin' you!" Cy interjected. "Terra is our friend."

Zero and Smoke both sighed in relief.

"That's good. We just weren't expecting such a… reaction." Zero laughed, scratching the back of his head.

"Yeah… and of course, that was **_SO_** my plan the whole time! I **_meant_** to throw the gun at that statue!" Smoke said.

Sub-Zero looked incredulously over at him. "The Hell you did! How would you have _possibly_ known she was in there?"

"Uhh…. Well…. I, um…."

"… I'm waiting…"

Robin interrupted their little argument.

"Guys, it doesn't matter if you **_meant_** to do it, or not. What _does_ matter is that our friend's **free** again!"

Sub-Zero looked at Terra with an interested expression. "Y'know, I never asked you… how on Earth did you wind up inside a stone statue, anyway?"

Terra's smile vanished, and she looked down at the ground. "… It's a long story."

"Oh _God_… I hope not as long as Zero's story about how he got that stupid, glow-in-the-dark medallion! _Heh_… Undead Dragon, my ass!"

"It's **true**! You can ask Robin and Cyborg, they were there!"

"Yeah… and I guess you weren't makin' up that part about the ship, either!"

"Hell no! I'll show my ship to you right now, if you want! It's right outside beneath the cliff!"

Seeing that this was about to get violent, Robin broke in.

"Yeah, Smoke, It's true. He _did_ fight a giant, undead dragon, and he _does_ have a ship… but that's not important! We were talking about Terra, remember?"

"Err… If you guys say so…" Smoke said with a shrug.

"What in the world is happening down here?" Snapped an irritated, soft voice coming down the stairs. "Can't a person meditate in peace? I've been trying now for—"

It was Raven. And when she came sufficiently down the staircase to see Terra standing there alive and well, she frozem there wide-eyed, just like Robin and Cy had.

"…_Sweet Azarath_… _I-I-Imp-possible_…!" he moaned softly, and then she fell to the floor with a thunk… apparently, she'd fainted.

Everyone stood staring for a minute.

"… Well, **THAT** was unexpected." Zero said with raised eyebrows.

"Yeah… I've never seen Raven so much as look startled before, much less faint!" Smoke added.

"I know… but we should try to wake her up…" Cy said with concern.

"Right." Robin nodded. "Cy, put her on the couch… Sub-Zero, go get some ice water… Beast Boy, Go get Jinx… Smoke, you try and wake up Raven."

"Got it." Cyborg said. "But… what are you gonna do?"

"I… I'm going to go get Starfire. She and her sister have been in there long enough." He said slowly. "And besides... I think she'd want to know about this."

_**In the Infirmary…**_

"I never knew… I never realized that you were actually _frightened_ of me!" Star exclaimed, looking teary-eyed.

"Yeah, well… now you know why I never said anything to you." Blackfire said softly and sullenly.

"…But it still does not make sense. I never meant for you to be frightened of me! I never wanted that!"

"I know. But considering you've been able to fly since birth, whereas I was the little, black-haired, grounded abomination… could you blame me?"

Starfire sniffled a little bit. She had always known that her sister had been the only Tamaranean she ever knew of that had been born without the ability of flight. She'd had to learn to do that as she got older; most Tamaraneans didn't have to think about it… they just did it. And that made Blackfire seem even stranger to them, thus they treated her even more like a monster.

What Star had never realized was how much of an effect this had on her self-esteem at the time. Blackfire hadn't always been as… ah, bold, shall we say…as she was now. When she'd been younger, she'd actually always been rather timid. But Starfire, naïve as she was, had always assumed this was merely just due to shyness. Now, she saw that it wasn't that simple.

"Sister… do you still hate me?" Starfire asked hesitantly.

Blackfire was silent…

Her mind raged furiously. But her heart, on the other hand… was hurting. She wanted to forgiver her sister, and beg for her forgiveness in return. She wanted to get down on her knees and beg. But her selfish pride simply wouldn't allow her.

Even her pride, however, couldn't nullify the intense grief and regret she was feeling right now… had she been in Star's position, she would've blasted her with so many energy bolts, she'd look like a pile of burnt charcoal. And she didn't understand why Starfire didn't do the same… why did she want to help her? And all Blackfire had ever done was hurt her…

As her mind was filled with these angsty thoughts, she found moisture suddenly forming from the corners of her bluish-gray eyes… she fought fiercely to try and repress them, to keep them back, to keep all the pain she felt inside… just as she'd always done. But she could not.

Within another minute, tears were pouring unbidden from her eyes, and she couldn't stop the soft gasps and sobs that were coming out of her mouth.

"Oh, Sister… I have upset you again… I am sorry." Starfire apologized softly, with guilt clouding her voice. But it only hurt Blackfire worse that **_she_**, of all people, could be feeling guilty right now. Blackfire was the one who should be feeling guilty, and she knew it.

"…_Starfire_… _S-sorry_… _S-so s-s-sorry_…" Blackfire managed to choke out as the tears came faster and harder than before. She curled up on her cot and pressed her face to her knees.

Surprised, Starfire's emerald eyes widened. "…What?" She certainly hadn't expected an apology.

"_I've…n-never done anything except hurt you… and you still treat me like… like… like a sister_." She sobbed.

"But Blackfire, you… you **_are_** my sister. Whether you realized it or not..." Star said, shaking her head. "Being one's sibling is not something that can be changed… whether one likes it or not, their sibling will always be their sibling."

Blackfire was completely unable to respond to this. She just sobbed and curled herself up even tighter. She remained that way for a moment, but flinched when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

She looked up with watery eyes and a tear-streaked face, and saw Starfire sitting on the cot next to her.

"Sister… **my** sister… please do not weep. We should be happy!"

Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Blackfire managed to reduce her crying-fit to sniffles.

Before she could say anything in response, the door to the infirmary opened up.

"Star! You still in here?" Robin called, walking in. "Come out here, quick! You'll never believe who—"

Robin stopped silent when he saw Starfire and Blackfire sitting right next to each other, Star's arm draped over her misty-eyed sister's shoulder.

"Uh… Who's here." Robin finished slowly. 'Wow… I guess it went better than I thought!' Robin thought mentally.

"Have we a visitor?" Starfire asked him curiously.

The Boy Wonder just smiled. "Star… You have _no idea_."

_**In The Living Room…**_

Sub-Zero handed Smoke a glass of ice water, which he immediately gave to the still wide-eyed Raven. Thankfully, the gunner had managed to wake her up… although not in the way Zero would have preferred. He'd tossed some of the ice water on her…

"I just can't believe it…" Raven murmured softly. "It doesn't seem possible."

"Yeah well…" Zero said. "With guys like us, I guess nothing's impossible."

They sat awaiting the others… until a cry rang out…

"**_Zero! You're home!"_**

Zero whipped his head around just in time to see a purple-pink-and-gray blur come bolting down the stairs and straight into him, knocking the wind out of him.

"Urk! Uhh… Hey, Jinx… Sorry I'm so late… but… we had… some trouble." He managed to get out over her tight hug.

"Trouble…?" she asked softly, loosening up a little. Her cat eyes went wide in concern. "What kind of trouble? Oh, Zero are you all right?"

"I'm just fine darling, but… Just wait 'til Star and Blackfire get here, then we'll explain everything…"

A moment later, Beast Boy came running down the stairs, panting.

"Geeze! Jinx, slow down! I know you're glad Zero's back, but…"

The green shape shifter turned his face to his friends and smiled. "Well… when am I gonna find out how you freed Terra?"

"Just as soon as Star and her Sister come back with Robin." Cy said.

As he said this, Jinx turned to the couch were Raven was sitting with Smoke. And there nearby stood a girl with long blonde hair and blue eyes…

"Sub-Zero…" Jinx said slowly. "… Who is **_she_**?"

"Well, she's…"

"We're here." Robin said walking down the steps. Starfire floated down after him, with Blackfire floating in just after Star, looking rather nervous.

"Robin… who is it that you wanted me to see?" Star asked uncertainly.

Smirking, the Boy Wonder just pointed down to Terra, who waved nervously up at the Tamaranean.

"Hi Star… remember me?" She asked playfully.

Star hovered in place for a moment, before letting out an ecstatic squeal that caused everyone in the room to flinch.

"**_TERRA_!**_ You_… _You_ _are_…"

"…Alive? Yeah, I've had a lot of people tell me that lately." She chuckled.

Starfire soared down from the top of the staircase and hugged Terra around the neck.

"Oh, _X'hal_… how is it that you have returned to us?" Star asked breathlessly.

Terra smiled and pointed Towards Sub-Zero and Smoke.

"Look, if everybody will just settle down…" Zero requested in exasperation. "We'll tell the whole story…"

_**Forty-Five Minutes After That…**_

"And **that**… is what happened." Zero finished.

"Yep… " Smoke added with a yawn.

Everybody was staring at them.

"So… you mean that by pure chance, you just happened to run outside the city and then fight the soldiers right above where Terra's Cave was?" Raven asked skeptically. "And that, in a further display of dumb luck, you caused the ground to cave in, and that you accidentally hit Terra and melted the stone?"

"That's my story, and I'm stickin' to it." Smoke said firmly.

"Yeah… as weird as this all sounds, I swear it's true." Zero added.

Robin shook his head. "No-one's doubting you… it just seems to good to be true."

"Well… I guess luck was just on our side." Zero chuckled, giving Jinx a playful glance. She blushed.

"Wait… are you saying… she was trapped inside a stone statue?" Jinx asked slowly. "But… how?"

"_That_… we don't know." Smoke said.

"We do…" Robin said softly. "And I guess to clear things up for Zero, Smoke, Jinx, and… Blackfire… We'd better explain."

Terra flinched slightly. She didn't care to hear this story again, having experienced it firsthand… but Beast Boy gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, and she felt some of her nervousness go.

_**ANOTHER Forty-Five Minutes Later…**_

"Are you serious? **_Slade_** was responsible for all this?" Zero demanded. He remembered the masked villain all too well… he had almost destroyed his homeland. For that, he was unforgivable.

"Yeah…" B.B. said grimly.

"Well… I guess that all that cleared things up." Cy said.

Smoke cleared his throat, and everybody looked over.

"Hey, uh… I hate to sound ignorant, but… who the Hell's Slade?"

"That's a good question… who **_IS_** Slade?" Blackfire agreed.

Sub-Zero groaned and slapped himself in the forehead.

"Robin…?" Zero began. "You wanna explain or should I?"

"I guess I'll do it…" Robin sighed.

**_Yet Another Five Minutes Later…_**

"Oh… I get it. Evil dumb-ass in a mask. Sounds simple enough." Smoke said with a nod. Blackfire nodded, too.

"Okay, look… I know it'd be nice for you guys to stay up and reminisce for a while, but…" Sub-Zero looked up at the clock on the wall, which read 1:47 in the morning. "… It's late… and I'm tired. The day has not been kind…"

"You ain't kiddin'…." Smoke agreed with a groan, rubbing his sore legs.

"I guess we should probably call it a night." Robin said with a yawn.

"But… where is Terra gonna sleep?" Cyborg asked. "Smoke's already got the couch…"

The geomancer was about to insist she could just sleep on the floor somewhere, but Beast Boy spoke up first.

"She can stay in my room." He insisted.

Everyone looked at him strangely.

"Err… I can sleep on the floor. I **can** turn into a dog, remember?" he elaborated.

"And my sister can use my bed." Star offered. Blackfire looked at her strangely.

"But… I can just sleep in the infir—" She started.

"No." Star shook her head firmly. "You have spent enough time in that little cot already. You will use my bed tonight." She insisted.

"Well… if that settles everything… G'night guys." Zero said, walking up to his room. But Smoke got him by the arm and stopped him.

"Shh… wait 'till they leave…" he whispered to Zero. "I need to talk to you."

Zero was puzzled, but agreed anyway.

As the others said their 'Good-Nights' and filed up the staircase, Smoke and Zero waited downstairs…

After they were all gone and out of earshot, Smoke turned to Sub-Zero.

"Listen, Pal… can you… keep a secret?" Smoke asked hesitantly.

"Of course." Zero replied without any hesitation.

"… I'm going out there again." Smoke said suddenly, pointing to the door.

"What? But why?"

A malicious glint appeared in the young gun's eyes…

"Because… those military pricks ain't gonna let me be unless I send 'em a message."

"Uhh… message?" Zero asked nervously.

"I'm going back to the base, Zero." Smoke stated flatly. "And… I'm wiping it off the face of this city."

"You're going back to the base? **_Alone_**? No, you can't! That's **_insane_**!"

"Look, Zero… I don't know how else to explain it. This is something I have to do… and I have to do it alone."

Sub-Zero still looked resistant.

"Look, I made you a promise once…" The gunner said seriously, referring to that night up on the Tower. "I promised that I wouldn't tell a soul what you told me. Now…" He looked at Zero with a firm, yet pleading expression. "… Can you do the same for me?"

Zero's red eyes shut, and he let out a heavy sigh.

"I… I can't pretend that I approve of this… but yes, you have my word. I won't tell."

"Great! Thanks buddy… this means a lot."

Smoke began to walk out the door, but Zero stopped him one, last time.

"Smoke…" he eyed his friend solemnly. "… Be careful."

"Don't worry about me, Freezerhead." He said jokingly. "I'll be fine."

And with that, Smoke ran back out the door into the night…

"God… I hope he doesn't do anything stupid…" the knight muttered.

And with that, the exhausted Sub-Zero walked quietly up to his room… and went to bed.

_**That's the End… for now. How was it? Good, Bad, So-So?**_

_**Read and Review… pretty please? **_

_**Anyway, a small preview for next chapter: Smoke gets himself a new ride…**_

_**Anyway, Good Bye! Farewell! Sayonara! Adieu! Au Revoir! Adios! Hasta La Vista! Later, Dude! Etc., Etc., Etc…**_

**_The Mad Phantom…_**


	9. Chapter Eight

_Disclaimer: I most assuredly do not possess any form or fashion of ownership of the Teen Titans franchise… Heh, sounded smart, didn't I?_

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Eight**_

The night was an unusually dark one… the sky was overcast and the streets of Jump City held scant few people that were still out this late. Most people would be at home, asleep in their beds. The only thing that kept some people up this late was if they had some sort of business.

Such was the case with Smoke. He knew what he needed to do, and he knew he had a limited time to do it in. So, he had to hurry.

The memories that the gunman held of the Jump City Military Base… were not pleasant. He had no contact with the rest of the world… except through figures wearing white coats and surgical masks… he hated them all. Every last one, even though he didn't even know their names. Except for one… the one he hated the most.

Professor Karl Wagner… the lead scientist on the 'Super-Soldier' project. He was a brilliant man, no doubt about it. He was very talented… but absolutely cruel. He would've just as soon dissected one of his own assistants as he would a rat, or a frog… and to him, Smoke had been a weapon; he'd been a tool. He had been referred to as…. 'It'… That infuriated Smoke.

And now, even though Smoke had escaped the place, and discovered a new life with new friends… they still wouldn't leave him alone! They hounded him still! But all that was about to change…

**He** was going _back_. And **they** were going _down_… **_hard_**.

As Smoke made his way through the dark streets and alleys of Jump City, he thought of his new friends… the ones who, in his mind, he had come to think of as his 'Protectors'. For the first time in his life… people actually cared about him. They didn't think of him as a weapon… or a tool… or an It… They thought of him as a person. And that was what he had longed for all along.

He thought of Robin… a natural leader, from what he could tell. Although The Boy Wonder had been suspicious at first, he had welcomed Smoke with open arms once convinced he wasn't a threat. For that, Smoke was extremely grateful.

Also, he found his thoughts drifting to Starfire. Cheerful and vibrant, she was one of the most enjoyable people to be around… Err, when she wasn't choking you to death with one of her hugs. He knew, of course, that she had nothing but good intentions… but he had a sneaky suspicion that she did not realize her own strength.

Cyborg and Beast Boy were quite a pair, as well. They were complete opposites in every way. Meat, Vegetarian… Big, little… you get the idea. But despite that, they were still the best of friends, and always seemed to be playing video games or doing something or other with each other.

Raven… now _there_ was an odd one. Had one of her relatives died recently, or was she **always** so gloomy? He wasn't sure… but hey, she was pretty cool, though. Even if she did sort of give him the creeps, she seemed nice enough. And besides, she could boil a mean kettle of tea.

As Smoke dodged a couple pedestrians with cell phones by hiding in an alley, he thought also of Sub-Zero. Now there was a swell guy if he'd ever met one. He'd quickly befriended Smoke, and Hell, he'd even named him. It only made good sense that He and Smoke had become fast friends.

Thoughts of his friend Zero reminded him of Zero's girlfriend. When he'd first met her, he'd been afraid he was in for another Raven. But the girl in question… Jinx, as it turned out her name was… happened to be much more lively and cheerful than Raven. Her name was probably the most fitting for her… her powers were based on luck and chance.

Lastly… he remembered Blackfire. Star's sister. Things seemed to have gone well between them, earlier. He was happy for that. When he thought of Blackfire, one word came to mind: **_Hotness_**. But besides that, she had also been quite nice to him… until she'd seen his communicator, anyway. Then, she'd tried to kill him, but hey, that was just a misunderstanding.

"_Hmm_… I wonder if Star could hook me up…?" Smoke mused softly to himself as he made his way down an empty street. But then, he shook his head and sighed softly. "_Yeah right_… like **_she'd_** see anything in **_me_**!"

His friends were all that mattered to him now. But he'd never get to enjoy time with them, if he couldn't get the leathernecks off his back.

Finally, he arrived at the gates of the base. The massive complex loomed up in front of him like a mountain of brick and steel. On the outside, it looked like any military base. A parking lot full of humvees… those army trucks that look like large hummers with armor plating… was out front. The building itself consisted mainly of red brick with occasional spots of shining metallic steel.

Making his way carefully to the front doors, he found that they were locked.

Wordlessly, the young gunner removed his massive chainsaw from his waist… and gave the crank a quick tug. There was a loud, grating screech as the chainsaw whirred to life, black smoke billowing out of it's thick, silver exhaust pipes.

With a look of pleased determination, Smoke lifted the cranked blade above his head… and then drove it into side of the doorframe. Slowly, with the sparking and shrieking of metal cutting metal, Smoke sawed the big double doors off their hinges. As the blade cut up the metal edges of the doors, they groaned loudly and then collapsed under their own weight… they fell inwards and thunked onto the ground.

Letting the chainsaw motor die back down, he kept it in one hand. With the other hand, he reached into the large leather holster on his back, and pulled out his quad-barreled 10 gauge. Saw and shotgun in hand, he stepped into the dark corridors of the military base…

_**Meanwhile, in Titan's Tower…**_

Sub-Zero had been in his bed for a while now… but he was unable to sleep, despite his fatigue.

He was worried, extremely so. He was also beginning to see just how foolish his promise had been. He had just allowed his friend to go running off into the night in order to fight off an entire building full of armed, hostile thugs single-handedly.

"Great move, Sub-Zero…" The knight muttered to himself. "Do you really think he's gonna be able to fight off an army of soldiers all by his lonesome?"

As the knight continued his mental self-berating, he was too distracted by his thoughts to even notice that the door to his room was slowly and gradually swinging open.

It was Jinx. She stepped quietly inside, being careful not to awaken him in case he was asleep. She didn't know he was still awake. Her hair was down, and she was dressed in a deep purple nightgown.

Sub-Zero just barely heard a quiet, small footstep… and looked over to see her standing there. Realizing he was awake, she walked closer to him. He was reminded of how her feline eyes almost seemed to shine in the dark.

"Huh? Jinx? Why are you still up?" He yawned.

She looked at him intently. "I just wanted… to talk to you."

"At this hour?"

"I… couldn't sleep."

"S'all right. Neither could I."

She walked over and sat down on the bed next to him. She looked… concerned.

"Jinx, is…. Is something wrong?" Zero asked in concern.

She looked at him again, and opened her mouth… but nothing came out.

"Whatever it is… you can tell me." He assured her.

Finally, she found her voice.

"Zero… why didn't you tell me you were getting homesick…?" The sorceress asked hesitantly.

Sub-Zero sat there for a moment, completely silent. It took a second for the question to sink in… When it did, his eyes widened and his mouth went slack-jawed.

"…_What_? _How_… _did you_…?"

Jinx looked down at the ground guiltily. Would he be mad at her for listening in on him and Smoke that night? She hadn't really been eavesdropping, but still…

"Well… I … I overheard you… that night on the rooftop…" She exlplained.

He blinked and sighed heavily. "I suppose you heard Smoke's gunshot?"

"Um… Yes." She nodded. "Zero… are you mad at me?"

He looked over in surprise and then shook his head violently. "Of course not! It's just… I didn't expect you to know…."

Jinx sighed to herself, and thought, 'Okay… it's now… or never.'

"Zero…?"

"Hmm?"

"I've been thinking… maybe… we could…" Jinx seemed hesitant to finish the sentence.

"… Yes?" Zero asked gently.

"Maybe we could go back?"

He looked at her blankly, his red eyes puzzled. "Go back where?"

Jinx mentally slapped herself in the forehead. Her boyfriend was a good fighter, and a gentleman… but not the sharpest tool in the shed at times.

"Your home! Your island!" She said in a _this-is-obvious_ type voice. "Y'know… Just you and me… go there on your ship? Like a … a vacation, sort've!" She purred.

For the first time that night, Sub-Zero smiled.

"It… would be wonderful to see home again…." He said slowly. "But the others…"

Jinx cut him off. "I've already asked Robin and the others. They thought it was a great idea."

Zero stared. "… Really?"

"Really." Jinx replied with a giggle. "So… do you want to?"

For another moment, Sub-Zero was silent. Then, a warm smile spread quickly across his face. It was obvious what he was going to say next.

"… I'd **love** to!"

_**Inside The Jump City Military Base…**_

A pair of patrolling guards was coming down a dimly lit corridor. They were on routine guard duty, basement level. Armed with Laser rifles and frag grenades, they were amply prepared for anything that might come their way.

Or so they thought…

There was the sudden sound of somebody tossing an empty soda can against a wall. They whipped around and looked… nothing there. While they were turned around, they didn't notice a shadowy figure coming up behind them with a big-Assed chainsaw…

'**_Vrrum….Vrrooom….Vra Vra VREEEEEEEEE_**!'

'**_AAAARRRRRRGHGHGH_**!"

A minute later, there was nothing left of the two idiots that couldn't be stuffed inside a nearby crate. The figure, Smoke, stopped the saw, and walked calmly down the hallway. A moment later… an alarm began blaring, and red lights were beginning to flash everywhere.

"Heh…. If they didn't know I was here before… they do **now**."

Breaking into a run, Smoke saw a large pair of hangar-style doors at the end of the hallway. He didn't know what was on the other end, but he didn't care. After all, he wasn't going anywhere in particular… He was just looking to clean this place out.

He was almost to the doors… about twenty feet away… when they suddenly began to slowly slide open… Revealing an entire platoon of armored soldiers. And they weren't using stun guns this time, either… they all had _grenade launchers_.

"Well… I guess the Doc thinks I'm worth _killin'_ now, _eh_?" Smoke chuckled loudly enough for them to hear.

"Prototype number _8675309_! You have officially been designated for termination due to unruly, rebellious behavior and dangerous side-effects!"

(A/N: _Heheheheh_… Kudos to anybody that can find the hidden joke in that line….)

"I guess that's polite words for saying you're about to kill me, huh?" Smoke said grimly. "Well, then…." In a second, his shotgun was out and loaded. "… **_Bring it on_**."

An instant later, the shots rang out.

Smoke leapt up and grabbed a pipe on the ceiling, hanging there. Several grenades rolled harmlessly below him and exploded behind him. With a pull of the trigger, Smoke's shotgun spit shot into their ranks, taking out two or three of them. As more grenades came flying, he dropped from the pipe and dashed behind a cement wall.

"Looks like you guys don't realize who you're messin' with…" Smoke chuckled. Holstering his shotgun, he got up his revolvers.

He stuck his head around the corner of the cement wall and fired off a salvo of bullets. A dozen more goons fell to the ground dead, smoking holes in various areas. Smoke stopped to reload, and swung open his revolver cylinders. Grabbing a handful of bullets out of his backpack, he reloaded and snapped the cylinders back into place.

Poking his head back up, he had just enough time to see a grenade coming barreling through the air at him. Reflexively, he took quick aim and fired, causing the grenade to explode before it ever hit him.

A five-minute gunfight went on, Smoke's .44 magnums spitting fire into the dark corridor, illuminating his determined face for a couple seconds at a time…

Finally, the guards' numbers had been reduced to four. They must've realized they didn't stand a chance, because they turned and retreated.

"Oh no, y'don't….." Smoke growled softly.

Grabbing his rifle out of his side-holster, he took quick, precise aim through the scope.

There was an eardrum splitting gunshot, then another, and then another, and another… the four remaining thugs were dead.

Levering more bullets into his rifle chamber, he smiled and put his guns up. He carefully stepped forward, taking special care to step on each and every one of the bullet-ridden bodies, and made his way forward.

Meanwhile, Professor Karl Wagner was in his laboratory. He had heard the gunshots. He knew whom… or, to him, what… was here. Walking over to an intercom-like device, he pressed the switch and spoke into it.

"Attention all base personnel… I want _every damn_ soldier on this base to report to floor **_20_** **_B_**, **ASAP**! Bring _all_ armor and weaponry!"

He grumbled softly to himself and walked back over to his desk. Sitting down at a computer, he began typing away furiously…

Smoke, while all this was going on, had found the elevator. Pressing the button for 20 B, he pressed it and leaned against the wall, whistling in an unconcerned manner. He waited… and soon, there was an off-key ding, and the doors grated open.

He remembered this floor… well. He was quickly able to find the storage room. Going in, he loaded up on some more bullets and shells, just in case.

Looking over on a shelf labeled, '**high** **explosives'**, he found a large time bomb. Smiling wickedly, he tucked it into the front pocket of his backpack.

"Hah… you'd think the Doc would be smart enough to keep this room locked up… Oh, well…"

Smoke could've sworn he heard noises outside… but he was preoccupied with loading more ammo into his pack. Unbeknownst to him, every armed soldier in the base was gathering outside the room he was in…

"Well… that should just about do it." He nodded, pleased with his re-stocking of ammo. He put his pack back on, and walked up to the door. Swinging it carelessly open with one hand.

And realized… he was screwed.

There, in front of him, were at least one hundred armed and armored soldiers with all manner of grenade launchers, auto-rifles, stun guns, acid guns, and god-knows-what-else…

"…. _Oh_… **_Shit_**…." Smoke moaned softly.

Professor Wagner was still inside his lab office, typing away at his computer keyboard… when all of the sudden, he heard another section of that floor of the base suddenly come alive with echoing gunshots, booming explosions, the crackling of flames, and the hiss of smoke and steam. The cacophony was one of loud, utter chaos. It sounded like… a **_war_** **_zone_**, out there. The only thing missing was the buzzing of overhead bombers… This went on for a grand total of 30 minutes. Then, without any warning whatsoever, it just went dead silent.

Carefully, he got up from his desk and stepped hesitantly to the doorway, assuming the guards had taken care of the mad prototype once and for all.

Wrong.

He found it was extremely difficult to open the door… and once he managed to shove it open, he realized it was because there was a stack of charred bodies propped up against it. In fact, the entire floor was covered in gunshot-covered bodies of his grunts. And many were cut up into pieces…

And then, he saw a sight that nearly made his heart stop…

There, in the midst of all this destruction… was a silhouette. It was black as death, and hunched over as if in exhaustion. Then, it lifted it's shadowed head up and looked around, as if reveling in the destruction it had caused. Then, it slowly and purposely stepped forward. It was Smoke.

"So… Whaddup, Doc?" He chuckled darkly, approaching Prof. Wagner with a single revolver raised. As he strode forward, he was absent-mindedly spinning the cylinder of his revolver, as if bored. With the other hand, he was fiddling with the straps of his overalls… And he was covered in what looked horribly like blood. "I don't suppose you have time for one more session… I'm ready to resolve my _anger_ _issues_…."

Panicking, the evil prof. ran back to his office and closed the door. Smoke slammed the door in after him.

Wordlessly, Smoke grabbed the doc and lifted him up by the coat. With a grunt of effort, Smoke punched into a wall, and tore out several thick wires and cords. Quickly, he tied Wagner up with them.

"What the deuce are you doing?" The Mad Scientist demanded.

"Finishing what I started."

Reaching into his pack… he grabbed the time bomb from earlier, and stuck it to Wagner's forehead. He set it for 20 minutes.

Rushing out and leaving the immobile and panicked villain there, he made his way back to the elevator. He took it back up to the surface floor. Once there, he ran into the parking lot.

Grinning, Smoke pulled into a pocket in his black leather jacket… and pulled out some keys he had gotten off of a slain guard. He eyed the nearby humvees greedily…

The Next Morning, At Titan's Tower… 

Robin yawned and walked into the living room. He looked around and saw that Jinx and Sub-Zero were already in there.

"Hey guys… what's up?"

Jinx smiled brightly and responded. "Zero and I are going on that _vacation_, we discussed earlier." She purred.

"If you don't mind." Zero added quickly.

The Boy Wonder smiled, knowing what they were talking about. "Sure… I don't care. Go for it!"

Zero grinned lopsidedly and began to thank Robin… but was interrupted when Cy suddenly burst open the door and came storming in.

"Okay, does anybody wanna explain to me why **_my Car_** got moved to make room for a big-ass army truck?" He demanded.

They stared blankly.

"Uhh… Army truck?" Robin asked slowly.

"**_Yeah_**! There's an army humvee with a camouflage paint job parked in **_MY_** garage!"

"That would be _mine_." A voice from behind said.

Cy turned around to see Smoke standing there.

"I'm sorry… I would've asked for permission, but you were asleep."

Cy stared. "It's fine, I guess but… Where did you get one of **_those_**?"

"Ah well… I did some late night shopping last night… just so happens a car dealer had one lying around that he didn't even want. Let me have it free of charge."

Everybody looked at him strangely, but did not question him further.

Sub-Zero was laughing inwardly. He thought he had a feeling where he'd gotten that truck….

"Anyway, Cy… can I borrow some of your tools again?" Smoke asked.

"Sure… why?"

"I'm going to make a few… tune ups…. On my new ride."

Abruptly, the door opened again and Beast Boy came in clutching a newspaper.

"Guys! Guys! Check this out!" The shape shifter yelped, pointing at the front page.

"Calm down!" Robin said. "What is it?"

Wordlessly, B.B. shoved the paper at Robin, who took it and began to read out loud.

"The downtown Jump City Military base was mysteriously bombed last night. No survivors have been discovered in the rubble, but the building itself was completely destroyed…." Robin's eyebrows raised in shock. "Holy…."

"Well…. How about that?" Smoke whistled, feigning surprise. "I guess… I guess I wasn't the only one who had the army on our bad side, eh?"

Then, smiling serenely, the gunman got up and went down to the garage.

For a moment, they were silent… then, Jinx spoke up.

"Is it just me…. Or is Smoke more cheerful than usual this morning?"

_**That's it for this chapter. Read and Review, let me know what you thought.**_

**_-The Mad Phantom…_**


	10. Chapter Nine

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans are not mine._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Nine**_

It was in a large, dark, auditorium-like chamber… The only light was coming from a single, dimmed spotlight that projected onto a person standing up front…

"Ladies and Gentlemen… he is not yet dead."

A man in a white technician's coat with khaki pants and black dress shoes spoke to an audience of similarly dressed men and women. He had blonde hair and a matching mustache and was standing upon what looked like a makeshift stage or podium.

Next to him, was a small operating table with a large white tarp thrown over it. The tarp seemed to be concealing something on the table, for there was a large bulge in it…

"His body was completely destroyed in the blast. The explosives _were_, after all, placed directly upon his head. However…" The man paused and looked up, revealing he was wearing a pair of dark shades that obscured his eyes completely. "Using the most advanced surgical techniques, the most potent medicines, and all the advanced tools and facilities out our disposal, we have just produced a modern medical miracle. We have resurrected and preserved the most valuable part of him of all…."

Smiling eerily, the man suddenly turned and yanked the white, cloth tarp off of the little surgical table. For a moment, nothing could be seen, but then…. The spotlight slowly and fluidly moved over onto the revealed object…

A collective, startled gasp of shock and horror could be heard coming from the crowd…

The lead man spoke proudly and calculatingly… "His mind."

There, where the bulge in the cover had been, was a _human_ _brain_ in a jar. It floated there, pulsing and gurgling sickeningly, in a glass jar full of a bizarre, bubbling, foaming blue liquid. Faint signs of smoke and steam were coming from the opening at the top of the jar.

"Friends and colleagues…" The man bowed and waved a hand gracefully towards the large jar. "I present to you, our own… Professor Karl Stefan Wagner."

_**Later, at Titan's Tower…**_

"That's it… I think I've got everything!" Jinx stated brightly, smiling and wiping her forehead gently with a pale gray hand.

Sub-Zero stared bemusedly at the massively tall and heavy pile of suitcases, boxes, backpacks, and bags before him. He had suspected that Jinx was a "heavy traveler", but… God, he hadn't expected this. In the interest of staying on his girlfriend's good side, though, he decided not to comment upon it.

"Ah, that's… great, darling. Now… all we need to do is get all your stuff into the cargo hold, and we'll be ready to go." He said.

"So are you guys, like, taking a cruise, or something?" Smoke asked curiously, sitting on the couch munching a bowl of popcorn. He was watching Cybrog and Beast Boy play some video game.

"Well, you could say that…" Zero chuckled with an amused nod.

"We're taking Zero's ship!" Jinx purred affectionately.

Smoke raised his eyebrows in surprise, and he laughed softly. "So, you really weren't kidding about having your own ship, eh?"

"Nope!" The knight stated proudly. "Fastest ship in existence… that I know of, anyway." He added.

"Tell me about it…" Robin groaned from behind them. He was in a chair, and had been listening to the radio. "It made us sick within five minutes of getting on it…."

"Anyway…" Sub-Zero interjected, changing the topic. "… I guess I should start packing… It takes a few days to get home, and we should probably leave soon."

"Looking forward to seeing the folks, huh?" Smoke asked, thinking to make some conversation.

Sub-Zero's back was facing to Smoke, but… he saw Zero stiffen visibly at this comment. The warrior did not reply…

"Uhh... Hey, Smoke… how about some target practice?" Cy asked quickly, getting off that subject. "You and me… in the gym."

Smoke, having the short attention span that he did, quickly agreed. "**_Sweet_**! I haven't had the chance to shoot at anything lately…."

Cyborg got up off the couch, which groaned slightly under his weight, and quickly made his way out of the room. Smoke jogged after him.After they were out of the room, Zero seemed to loosen up a little, and exhaled deeply.

"Sorry guys…" he whispered softly. "I shouldn't have reacted like that…"

Jinx immediately hurried over and hugged Zero's middle from behind, wrapping her arms around his midriff comfortingly. "It's no problem…" She said insistently. "I know that you…" She cut off, looking just a bit hesitant.

"Yeah, it's all right…" Raven added slowly and calmly from a nearby chair. She was sitting and reading one of her thick books. "We know… that you don't like to talk about your parents." She finished Jinx's sentence.

"… Thanks, guys…" Zero said softly, and he turned around to give Jinx an affectionate kiss on the neck. She purred softly and closed her pink, cat eyes as he did so… but they stopped and blushed when a certain green shape shifter cleared his throat loudly and emphatically.

"So… Are you guys going to be gone a couple weeks, or what?" Beast Boy asked. With Cy gone with Smoke, he was rooting around in a shelf, looking for a movie to watch.

"Well… it takes about four days to get there… and we'll probably stay about a week, so… yeah, almost two weeks." Zero nodded to indicate the affirmative.

Sub-Zero walked up to the big pile of baggage Jinx had packed for herself, and grunted softly as he gathered it up in his arms. He started walking out the doorway on his way out to the ship.

"_Wait for me_!" Jinx purred loudly, going out after him.

Sub-Zero and Jinx made their way out to the Cliffside. Jinx told him she could carry some of her bags, but he insisted he had it. She just felt guilty that _he_ was lugging around all _her_ stuff. Although… she felt a bit better to see that Zero definitely seemed to be more cheerful than he'd been in a while.

After a long walk, and a lot of conversation between the two, they were standing above the massive cliff edge above the sea. Very carefully, Sub-Zero sat Jinx's pile of bags on the ground and silently breathed a sigh of relief, mentally thanking the good lord that he didn't have carry that stuff much farther… When he leaned back up from the ground, his back popped audibly, causing Jinx to gasp and immediately ask if he was all right. Again, he assured her he was just fine…

"Okay…" He said softly, rubbing his gloved hands together in anticipation. "Here it goes…"

The young knight reached down into one of the many pockets on his gray belt, and rummaged around, as though looking for something in particular. After a moment of searching around, he produced a small, metal whistle. It's silvery surface sparkled in the sunlight as if highly polished.

Licking his lips and taking a deep breath, Zero blew into the whistle with as much force as he could muster. It produced no noise whatsoever, but rather, it almost seemed to cause a sudden chill to run through the air…

Jinx grinned as she realized what he was doing. She'd seen him summon his ship once before, when they had gotten home from his island the first time. It was… a magnificent sight, to say the least. So needless to say, she was looking forward to seeing it again.

Soon, there was a slight buzzing sound from deep underneath them… it was very familiar to Zero, but for Jinx, it was only her second time to have heard it. It seemed muffled and echoey… Soon, the soft noise began to grow rapidly. It seemed to grow and inflect, becoming more and more centered within the large expanse of clear, blue water below them.

After a minute or so, it had become a loudly gurgling roar, and the water began to churn and foam. It was like a massive whirlpool forming, capped by large waves and violent sprays of white foam.

As geysers of water began to shoot upwards with incredible force, something else was coming up. A monstrously large and shadowy shape was rising from the deep. Then, it rose above the surface to reveal it was Zero's ship.

As it came gracefully to the surface, the frothing and bubbling of the waters calmed down. The unearthly noise began to fade back out. All was suddenly dead calm, and Zero's ship was visible.

_The Fryse Wyrm_, as Zero called it, was now before them.

Jinx laughed and clapped, delighted by the giant waterworks display that had just taken place before her eyes. Zero chuckled and bowed.

"_Beautiful_! I've never seen anything **like** that!" Jinx said. "Well… except for the last time you did that…" She added sheepishly, blushing just a little bit.

"It's useful…" Zero said with a smile and a nod. "After all… I wouldn't want anyone stealing my ship, now _would_ I?"

Sub-Zero turned towards the massive, whitewood galleon that floated before them. As he raised his hands and concentrated, his palms began to glow with a faint, bluish-white light.

A moment later, there was a loud _'Whoosh'_ as a beam of pale blue frost sprayed forth from his hands. It spiraled quickly in the air a few times, and then made a turn toward his ship. Hardening into a large, thick sheet of ice, it formed a frozen bridge between the edge of the cliff and the ship's deck. This, of course, was how Sub-Zero always boarded and left his ship.

Sub-Zero bent over, and grunted softly as he carefully lifted the big stack of luggage into his arms again. But he didn't go up the ramp just yet.

"Ladies first?" He offered to Jinx, and he would've bowed or made a polite motion with his hand… but he was thoroughly weighted down at the moment…

She blushed and giggled. With a careful step she started up the ice ramp. Zero followed along behind her… he wasn't really worried about her slipping; she had extremely good balance, and she was light on her feet, as well.

Once on the deck, Zero kicked open the large trapdoor that led down below-deck and jumped down into the dark pit it. There were the faint sounds of him storing Jinx's stuff , and then he came climbing back up a couple minutes later, breathing heavily and slouching in a tired manner.

"Okay… I guess this is it…" He murmured to himself. Then, he turned to Jinx. "… Are you ready?"

She smiled brightly back at him. "As ready as I'll ever be!"

_**Back at the Tower…**_

"Man… I gotta admit… you're good." Cy congratulated.

Cyborg and Smoke had just finished their little target match. It had been a close race between the two; Smoke was extremely good, but Cy was no pushover with his sonic cannon either. At the end, however, Smoke's dual revolvers had destroyed exactly four more targets than Cy's cannon. Smoke had taken out 98 targets in 10 minutes… Cy had taken out 94 targets, also in 10 minutes.

"Thanks… I guess shooting's one of the few thing's I'm good at." Smoke chuckled, blushing slightly and fiddling nervously with the straps on his overalls. He wasn't used to such open acknowledgment.

"You did excellently. Personally, I think I'm definitely gonna be sleepin' a lot easier knowing you're on our side!" Cyborg joked, getting a hearty laugh out of both of them. Then, Cy got a kind of cunning look in his eyes…

"Say… Smoke, could you come with me for a few minutes..? Got something to show ya while we're down here…"

"Sure. No problem…"

Cy walked off in the general direction of the Titan's Tower garage… and motioned silently for Smoke to follow. With a casual shrug, he followed along behind him.

They walked along for several minutes, neither of them saying a word. The awkward silence was beginning to make the gunman a bit nervous… And where was Cy taking him, anyway?

"So, Uh…" Smoke paused and cleared his throat. "Where we goin', anyway?"

"Oh, you'll see… It's kind of a surprise."

This caused Smoke to gulp slightly. He wasn't sure about his current situation, but in the military… surprises were NOT good things…

Finally, they reached the garage… there, parked next to the T-Car, was the large humvee that Smoke had "Acquired" earlier…

"This way…" Cy said, a smile slowly growing across his face. Smoke nodded and followed.

When Cy finally got to where he was going, it was nothing but a door, with a small sign hanging on the doorknob that read: 'Spare Tools/Parts'.

"Uuhh…. Spare tools and parts?" Smoke asked, thoroughly puzzled.

Cy laughed, and reached over to the little sign… with a quick spin of his large, metallic hand, he spun it around to the other side, which normally would have been nothing but a big blank, but …

There, in large, black, bold letters, were the words:**_ 'Smoke's Quarters…'_**

In front of the young gunners stunned face, Cyborg's grin grew even more pronounced than before. Cy turned the knob, and swung the rusty, metal door open with a creak.

It was no longer a room of old junk…

It was a big room, with a large, wooden, red-and-white bull's-eye set up at one end, several gun-racks and gun-cases mounted at various places on the wall, a large T.V. with antennae, a gamestation, and a remote, and last but not least, a camouflage recliner with a matching camo couch.

At the end of another wall was a large, metal workbench with tools and parts of every imaginable make and model. It also had a red fire extinguisher mounted on the wall next to it… just in case.

Several posters all over the wall displayed titles of movies such as: The Godfather, Evil Dead 2, Dirty Harry, and The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly… Fittingly enough, most of these were what you would call, "shoot 'em ups"…

The ceiling had a small, somewhat rickety fan with a single light bulb. Next to this, a large, highly polished disco ball had been mounted.

Whilst Smoke just stood there absolutely speechless, Cy burst in to pleased laughter.

"Well… Looks like I did a good job, huh?" He asked with a nod.

This seemed to snap Smoke out of his funk somewhat. "Holy… you mean that this is MY room, now?" He demanded.

"Yep… I just felt kind of guilty about you always sleeping on the couch and hanging out in the living room…" The bionic teen explained. "So, I cleaned up this old storage room and made a few orders…"

Cyborg motioned toward the well-stocked drawers upon the shiny workbench. "I know how you love to fiddle with guns and ammo and explosives and whatnot, so…" He shrugged sheepishly. "I ordered a bunch of stuff like that to keep you busy. But please… don't blow up the Tower." He joked. "Robin would have my mechanical ass…"

"Geeze, Cy, I… If I didn't think crying would make me a pansy, I… I'd probably be tearing up right about now. I dunno what to say…"

Cyborgs slapped his friend on the back and, were it not for Smoke's superhuman strength, he probably would have knocked him down.

"Don't say anything. And don't tell the others…" Cy warned hesitantly.

"Huh? They weren't in on this?"

"Well, uh… No. Just me. And if they knew I did all this without them, they'd probably be mad at me… for leaving them out of the loop, I mean."

"I get it… Sure, I won't tell 'em."

"I'll tell them the first chance I get, now that it's finished."

"Cy, I… I really do appreciate all this…"

He cut Smoke off mid sentence. "Say no more, dawg… Don't even mention it. After all… that's what friends are for, right?"

After a moment, the full weight of this statement sunk into Smoke's thick skull, and he smiled widely.

"Yeah, I… I guess it is."

_**In A Secret Underground Facility…**_

**_  
_**"The new Mark 90 Battle Mech is ready, sir!"

"Excellent… prepare the old man's brain… but don't drop the jar, or the eggheads will be… upset, with us…"

These words were spoken by a pair of tall, shaved-headed men wearing full military uniform and holding submachine guns.

"Right away, sir!"

One of the men whistled to a nearby group of guards, who had been milling around in a small group. He motioned toward a large, metal door with a chain nearby.

Immediately, they saluted, shouted "Sir, Yes Sir!" in exact unison, and jogged over toward the door.

Grabbing the chains, they began pulling them down… and the large door began slowly grating open, revealing a large black shape behind…

When the door was fully open, it was revealed completely…

It was a large, robot. It's dull silvery surface clashed dissonantly with the spots of jet black in certain areas, such as the head, arms, and legs.

The robot itself seemed to be about 15 feet tall,probably several tons in weight,and was vaguely humanoid; it had two arms, two legs, a head, and… a tail. It stood upright on two legs and held the arms by it's side. The tail curved up behind it's back, in an arch.

It was armed to the proverbial teeth, as well.

It's left arm was a long, nine-barreled Minigun, truly a gat to be reckoned with. It's right arm, on the other hand, was outfitted with a huge, shining, and deadly-looking Buzzsaw, with a serrated, round blade that looked absolutely lethal; it seemed as though it could cut through anything.

The technical terror's arsenal continued with it's long, whip like tail. It was very thick, and looked very strong. The tip was ended with a large, pointed, and razor-sharp hook.

The robot's weapons tech didn't end there, either. Mounted on it's shoulders was a pair of large, square, rocket launching turrets… already loaded with heat-seeking missiles.

A large jetpack was built right into the thing's back, presumably for the purpose of flight, and large metallic wings with cruel, jagged edges jutted out from the sides of the jetpack. The wingspan was about 12 feet.

To cap off it's overwhelming ordinance was a large device attached to the forehead… it somewhat resembled a small satellite. It was, in reality, a beam weapon that fired a searing-hot laser beam.

The most prominent feature of this magnificent machine, though… was a small "Cockpit" style area on the head. It showed through from the front, covered by tempered, bulletproof, waterproof, fireproof, and sealed airtight glass. It was filled with a strange, frothing, blue concoction.

"_Excellent_…" The leader hissed wickedly. "Bring… his **brain**."

A technician in a surgical mask and white laboratory coat came running in, carefully holding the same brain from before…

Using a ladder set up by the guards, he climbed up and opened up the top of the battlemech's head… Carefully, with a look of mingled disgust and excitement, he places the brain in the bizarre, churning mixture, and closes the lid. Using a large welding torch handed to him by a lab assistant, he sealed up the top, making sure that it would stay closed.

Everyone backed off nervously…

Immediately, as though the big machine had a life of it's own… Small metal tentacles were seen emerging from the innards of the bot and entering the chemical-filled "cockpit." They slithered around in there, a bit like odd, mechanical snakes… and without warning, suddenly lashed out and wrapped themselves around the still-pulsing brain.

The entire bot sparked, smoked, and shook for a moment… and then, it began to move of it's own accord…

Their celebration was short lived, however… the bot raised it's gatling gun… and opened fire for no apparent reason.

Most of the guards and scientists were killed off instantly by the rain of bullets… all but one.

"_**Wagner**_!" He screamed. "_What_ _the_ _Hell_ _are_ _you_ **_doing_**?"

The thing… Spoke. It was, without a doubt. Karl Wagner's voice, but with a slightly static and mechanical quality, as though coming from a speaker.

"I am not Wagner… call me… _**Myntull**_."

And then, the thing sliced the screaming guy into two halves with it's whirring buzz saw, splattering the floor and walls with blood… for the first of many times.

_**The Doc's back. And he's even crazier than before, because now he's a giant robotic supervillain calling himself, Dr. Myntull This will no doubt cause problems for the Titans, Especially Smoke… and why did this happen just as Zero and Jinx left, and Smoke was getting ready to ask Blackfire out on a date? Oh well…**_

_**As always, read, review, and let me know what you think…**_

**_--The Mad Phantom…_**


	11. Chapter Ten

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans aren't my property…_

**_Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Ten_**

"Come on… Come on, just a little… **_There_**! Got it!"

Smoke sat in his new room, working on a batch of new shotgun shells… not that there was anything wrong with his old triple aught buckshot, but… Hey, if **_you_** had the means to make bigger and better stuff, _wouldn't_ you?

Right now, Smoke was very carefully pouring what looked like a handful of tiny, arrow-like, steel needles into a hollow shell, as opposed to the usual lead pellets that filled normal shot shells. If things went as he hoped, he would soon have some new ammo at his disposal.

After finishing the work on this shell, he tossed it into a large, cardboard box next to the workbench, which was filled with identical shells he had also painstakingly crafted, one by one. Apparently, he was fairly confident that these new cartridges would work, or else he probably wouldn't have made so many of them at one time.

After getting up and inspecting the box critically for a brief moment, Smoke nodded his approval to himself. With a soft grunt, he reached down and picked up the box, cautiously carrying it outside his room and out into the garage.

Smoke had set up a row of large bull's-eye targets across the back wall of the Titan's Tower garage. This was where he intended to test out his new gear, it seemed. The gunman had, of course, been careful to keep them as distant as possible from both the T-Car and his own Humvee, lest somebody lose a kick ass vehicle… And besides, Smoke had the distinct feeling that if he so much as put a minor scratch or dent on the T-Car, he might just wind up on the business end of a lethally hi-tech sonic cannon, courtesy of Cyborg himself.

Setting the box down, he plopped himself down on the ground and wiped his forehead, sighing heavily with fatigue. He figured that after all of the work he'd done, he might as well take a quick little break.

As he let his mind wander, he found his thoughts quickly and almost involuntarily towards a certain black-haired alien… Star's sister, Blackfire.

Smoke had absolutely no idea why he was so… _enamored_, with her. Sure, she was pretty… but Hell; there were a lot of pretty girls around, and yet… Smoke would've rather received just a hug from Blackfire than a full make-out with any supermodel… and he had no idea why.

He **did** know, however, that whenever he managed to catch so much as a glimpse of her… it felt as if he'd suddenly been hit over the head; it made him feel dizzy and light headed. He also felt choked up and unable to speak properly, at least not without fumbling over his words a bit. All of the classic symptoms were there, and if Smoke hadn't of known any better, he would've thought he was in…

… _**Love.**_

That was simply impossible. He was a genetic construct, a _'secret_ _weapon'_… he wasn't supposed to experience emotions like that. The scientists who had made him wouldn't of had any real reason to put such emotional capabilities in him… but still, it was abundantly clear that he had definitely not been what they'd expected—Rebellious and free-spirited.

And then again, didn't he feel **other** emotions? He felt happiness when he was around his new friends, he felt sadness when he reflected upon his abnormal origins, and he felt angry when attacked by enemies… So was it really so unlikely that he was capable of falling in love, too…?

No. It just… couldn't be. It was too wussy, too cliché, too…

… It was too good to be true, that's what it was. That was just exactly it.

Smoke reasoned to himself that the only reason he was thinking these things was an excuse to justify his illogical attraction to Blackfire.

But… Smoke knew another thing for sure: If he didn't do something about this before long, he was going to lose what semblance of sanity he had!

The young gunman knew exactly what he wanted to do, No… what he NEEDED to do… but the real question was… Was he capable of doing it?

He wanted to ask her out on a date. He had already decided that. No question about it. But as a person with limited social experience, he had absolutely, positively no idea as to how to go about it…

For instance… the scenario could go like this.

In his mind, Smoke pictured himself strutting confidently up to Blackfire, humming a song under his breath as though completely unworried, a self-assured smirk upon his face.

"Oh, Hey there, Sweetcheeks… how's about you and me go out on the town tonight?" He thought of himself saying to her with a swarthy, and somewhat arrogant tone that wasn't typical of him, whilst spinning his shotgun in one hand and wiping his hair with the other.

He was pleased with this method at first… until his daydream continued, at which point there was a loud **_'SMACK!'_** and his imaginary self came flying down the hallway with a large, red handprint on the side of his face, thudding against a window and sliding off with a squeaky noise… Ouch.

Smoke sighed heavily and decided that the whole macho, playboy, '_superior_ _to_ _thou_' approach…. Most assuredly wasn't the way to go…

… Especially when you consider that the object of your affections was capable of high-speed flight, amazing super strength, and energy blasts that were powerful enough to nuke a small high-rise apartment…

Smoke shivered nervously and decided to put this pesky topic out of his mind… for right now, anyways.

Reaching back and getting up his quad shotgun, Smoke broke open the hinge on his shotgun's barrels, opened them up, and carefully removed the red-and-gold buckshot shells that were already inside. He carefully placed these shells into his jacket pocket, and then grinned at the box of blue-and-gold flechette (Needle-filled) shells inside his box, a look of pleased anticipation on his face.

As he eagerly reached down and grabbed a handful of the new ammo, his golden-hazel eyes shone with excitement. Quickly and carefully, he loaded four flechette shells into his shotgun barrels and snapped them closed again.

Taking a deep breath to slow down his racing heart, he positioned himself roughly thirty feet away from one of the larger bull's-eye targets.

Smoke took his shotgun in both hands… raised it up and placed the padded stock against his shoulder… cocked the pair of small hammers on either side… squinted one eye and aimed carefully with the other… concentrated and focused as hard as he could… and…

… … … … _**BLAAAAMM! **… Fwweeeeeet!_

The usual, mighty roar of his shotgun was, this time, accompanied by the high pitched whizzing of small projectiles hurtling forcefully through the air… the steel flechette needles.

When the smoke and steam from the ends of his barrels dissipated, he opened his eyes and observed his target.

The once-proud crosshair… now looked akin to a slice of Swiss cheese. Innumerable tiny holes were punched all the way through it, and the swarm of needles were firmly lodged about halfway in the wall behind the target…

If that big target had been a group of enemies, they would have been pierced more times than the tongue of a hooker in Tijuana…

"**_YEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHH BAAABY!_**"

Almost immediately, Smoke laughed out loud and broke into what would best be described as a cross between an Inzone victory dance, and a disco break dance…

This went on for about twenty minutes…

_**Twenty Minutes Later, When Smoke Manages To Calm Down…**_

"…_Pant_…_Pant_…. Oh Man… That was great…"

Smoke was lying on the floor, belly up and exhausted. He grabbed one of the flechette shells out of the box and twirled it fondly in his fingers.

"You, my little friend, are now officially declared safe-for-fire, easy-to-use… and appropriate for Ass Kicking."

Puckering up, he kissed the thing fondly on it's metal tip, and slid it into the front pocket on his denim overalls.

His restful victory was short lived, however…

"_**WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON DOWN HERE?"**_

Smoke leapt to his feet with a startled yelp, and whipped around to find himself face to face with… the most terrible beast he'd ever seen.

It's face was greenish and slimy, as though made out of goo, and it's eyes were large, round, and dark green with no visible pupils. It was covered with white fur, and had long claws, and a wild yellow mane grew from it's head.

"_GAH! STAY BACK, CRITTER! OR I'LL BLAST YOUR DAMNED, DIRTY ASS TO KINGDOM COME!_" Smoke screamed in fright, bringing his shotgun back up and hastily loading in more flechette rounds…

"What in the name of God are you talking about! **YOU'RE** the one firing off damn guns this time of night!"

"…H-Huh…?"

Wait a minute… that was a girl's voice…

Shaking and cracking open one eye, he realized that he'd jumped the gun (No pun intended, folks!) … And he had done so badly.

It was no monster… It was Terra.

The 'Slimy face' was due to a large amount of some sort of crème that she'd applied to her face. The strange eyes were due to the fact that she was wearing small slices of cucumber over them. The yellow mane was really her hair and the white fur was a white robe… she picked off a cucumber and glared angrily at him.

"What are you thinking?" She hissed. "A girl who's been stuck in rock all this time needs her beauty sleep, y'know! And you scared poor Beast Boy to death! He's got the ears of a bloodhound, after all…"

These words took a moment to penetrate Smoke's large, stony head… and another moment for his brain to digest. He did an anime style sweat drop and grinned sheepishly.

"Uuhhh… Sorry?"

_**Thirty Minutes Later, After Terra Finishes Chewing Smoke Out And Then Storms Back Off To Bed…**_

"…Damn!" Smoke muttered, going back into his room. "Must be her time of the month, or somethin'…"

Smoke placed the box of flechette shells next to his workbench. He could now say, beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were successes. Smoke pulled a small stack of sticky post-it notes from a drawer and a pen, too.

He scrawled the following memo down:

'Note to self: Soundproof garage…' 

Then, the gunner stuck it to the wall next to a Die Hard poster and flopped down on his camo couch. He looked over at the clock on the wall and saw 2:37 A.M.

'Holy crap, No wonder she was so pissed…' Smoke lamented mentally.

But he had work to do…

He walked over to his workbench again, and opened a drawer. He pulled out a little something he'd been working on for a while now…

It was a large, pointed, lead slug… like the type one would fire from a rifle. Although not visible from the outside, Smoke had also taken the liberty of filling it's insides with high explosives and toxic chemicals…

Smiling, Smoke pulled out several more of these and stuck them into his jacket pocket as well. Reaching down into the drawer one last time, he pulled out a large, black flashlight.

Smoke exited his room, left the garage area, carefully and stealthily made his way to the entrance, and went outside. He didn't want to wake anyone up this time…

He walked… and walked… and then, he walked some more until he was absolutely certain he wouldn't disturb anyone in the Tower…

He removed his Sniper Rifle from his side holster. With a chuckle, he levered a few of these slugs into the rifle chamber and looked around.

It was pitch black in the night, but Smoke's genetically enhanced eyesight allowed him to see with perfect 20/20 vision, even at great distances.

He spotted a massive boulder propped up against a rocky ledge… With a few quick calculations, Smoke decided that it was almost a quarter of a mile away from his current location…

Taking aim through the scope of his rifle… he focused on the boulder, put all other thoughts from his mind…

With a deafening gunshot, the night was illuminated for a split second by the flaming tongues of sparks and smoke that lashed out violently from the rifle's barrel…

A couple of seconds later, the huge, solid stone boulder in the distance… just exploded into tiny fragments that fell through the air and pelted the ground like hail, kicking up dirt and debris high into the night sky. The entire area around it went up in lights as if someone had turned on a massive neon sign. A second later, the light vanished suddenly and a cloud of smoke, dust, and fumes began rising from the area where the big rock had been.

So, what do you get when you cross a sniper rifle with a grenade launcher? Smoke's new explosive slug ammo, apparently.

Smoke went inside again, and made his way quietly into his room.

There were a couple more things yet that needed to be done before the intrepid young amateur gunsmith could rest…

First, Smoke reached into a cubby on his work bench, and pulled out… a pair of laser sights.

He opened up a drawer and produced a small welding torch as well…

Then, he removed the revolvers from his holsters and emptied the bullets out, putting them in his pockets for right now. He laid the dual weapons down on the flat surface of the bench, and began welding the laser sights to the undersides of the barrels… the dimmed room flickered to life with the torch's light…

**_One Hour Later…_**

"Whew… Done at last!" Smoke said, wiping perspiration from his forehead.

He examined his side arms proudly. The laser sights had been attached successfully to the guns, without looking awkward. He had smoothed out the edges and polished the entire weapons… and when he tested them out, the bright red pinpoints on the wall and the narrow beams coming from his pistols let him know that they worked flawlessly.

Smoke had to admit, it took a brave or foolish man to jury rig dangerous revolvers without fear of getting hurt… but hey, maybe he was a bit of both.

Last but not least, Smoke needed to test out one last thing…

He got his trusty chainsaw, and placed it on the bench.

The other day when he'd gone out with Sub-Zero, he had realized how awkward it was to walk around with a 60" (Five Foot!) chainsaw…

So, he'd installed a new 'Switchblade' mechanism into the beavertooth that allowed Smoke to retract the blade back into the body of the saw, and then 'Spring out' like a switchblade knife when needed.

He tested it out by flipping a dial on the side. The blade cranked slowly back into the body with a soft, grating rumble. Then, when he flipped it back, the blade suddenly thrust itself back into place with a razor-like noise.

Smoke looked around at his new gear, and smiled. This was going to come in handy… no doubt about it. And for some strange reason he didn't really know… he had a nervous feeling that he was going to need all the firepower he could get soon.

Smoke laid down on the camo couch, took off his jacket and rolled it up as a pillow, and covered himself over with a black mesh tarp as a blanket. He needed his sleep, too. For tomorrow, he took on the greatest challenge of all…

Attempting to ask a Tamaranean out on a date… and not Starfire.

_**Okay… I know, I know, not a lot happened in this chapter… but don't worry, because I guarantee next chapter will be more exciting. As for Smoke's new stuff, I hope those ideas were as cool as they were when I first thought of them…**_

_**Anyway, next chapter Wagner (Whom in his demented, robotic, supervillain-ness now calls himself, Dr. Myntull) comes back to haunt Smoke and the rest with a vengeance… and possibly screw up things for Smoke, if Blackfire agrees to a date…**_

_**Read, Review, and Tell me your opinions… they really help. On that note, I'd just like to thank everybody that's reviewed so far, from the bottom of my heart. My first fic was twice as long as this one is now when I finished it, and already I have more reviews for this one than for the first one! THANK YOU!**_

_**So anyway, I hope to update again soon…**_

_**--The Mad Phantom…**_


	12. Chapter Eleven

_Disclaimer: I still don't own 'em. Sigh… Maybe one day… or not. Oh well…_

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Eleven **_

"Starfire… are you really sure this is such a good idea…?" Blackfire asked her sister nervously.

Star beamed happily in response. "_Certainly_! I have already requested friends Raven and Terra to come with us… what could go wrong?"

"…. Plenty." Blackfire murmured back under her breath.

"Hmm?"

"Uh… Nothing sis. Sure… I'll go with you."

Blackfire had been sharing Starfire's room since she'd arrived. And now, it seemed her sister wanted to share some time together, too. She had just asked Blackfire to go to the mall, which Blackfire thought was fine… until Star told her that Raven and Terra were going. Well… Terra was okay, maybe, but… she just couldn't shake the doubts she had about Raven. She just thought it unlikely that Raven had really accepted her. Sure, the sorceress wouldn't make a scene in front of Starfire, but still… it made Blackfire nervous.

"Glorious! I shall go and inform Raven and Terra immediately!" Star chirped, and flew out the door, leaving Blackfire alone in the room. She sighed, and flopped down on Star's bed, deciding to try and catch a brief nap before they left for the 'Mall of Shopping', as her sister called it.

Starfire was halfway down the hallway, before she heard a sound coming from her right. She froze in midair, and looked around with confusion in her eyes. She saw nothing… just an empty hallway. Turning back around, she was just about to go on her way again, but… she heard it again… louder and clearer this time.

"… _Pssst_….!"

Star looked around for a minute more, perplexed, before the strange voice repeated itself.

"_Psst_! Star… over here…"

She realized then that it was a voice she knew, the voice of… Smoke?

She followed the source, and found a large potted plant in the corner that Beast Boy had put in a month or so ago… a big bush type plant.

She looked at it curiously, and let out a startled little yelp when Smoke's head suddenly burst up from the soil in the pot, with the bush perched on top. How he had gotten down in that pot, the Tamaranean had no idea, but…

"Star… I need to talk to you."

She blinked in confusion, and tilted her head quizzically. "… Friend Smoke… your strange behavior worries me. Have you had some of Sub-Zero's rum drink without permission while he was gone?"

Smoke shook his head vigorously and replied. "No! And not so loud! I'm hiding for a reason, y'know…"

"But why do you conceal yourself? Are you in danger?" Star asked in concern.

"Well… not _really_…"

"Then I do not understand…"

Smoke sighed and rubbed his temples. "Look, Star… It's like this. I really need your help with something… Something very important."

Starfire smiled and knelt down to look face to face with the gunman. "Of course! I would be happy to help you with anything I can…"

"Thanks, but there's something you need to know, first." Smoke said, interrupting her. "… Star… What I'm about to tell you… is just between us, okay?"

Star raised an eyebrow skeptically. "… I do not like keeping secrets from my friends." She said softly.

"Trust me, Star… This secret will hurt nobody. And besides, I really, really, need you to help me, okay?"

"… All right." Star said slowly, and took a deep breath. "What is it that you wish of me?"

"It's about your sister, Blackfire…"

"Yes? What about my sister?"

Smoke fidgeted nervously and cut his eyes around the hallway, as if to make sure no one was listening. "Star… I know that you don't always understand Earth language, so… do you know what a 'Date' is?"

Star beamed. "Of course! A date is the sharing of time, affection, and gifts with a significant other, generally with romantic implications and suggesting an intimate relationship."

Smoke stared bemusedly. He hadn't expected so many… big words. "Uhh… yeah, **that**. Well, I… I want to… that is, I'm going to…" Smoke gulped loudly and inhaled sharply. "… Ask Blackfire to go out on a date with me…"

Smoke waited with baited breath, trying to gauge Starfire's reaction. At first, she just hovered there looking at him blankly. Then, something seemed to '_click_', and she squealed loudly, hugging him forcefully around the neck. Smoke immediately tensed up, expecting to get choked again… but was surprised when Star's hug turned out much more… gentle, than normal.

"Oh, Friend Smoke, that is wonderful! Come, I shall take you to her, and…"

Smoke cut her off. "**NO**! No, Star, not yet! I… I'm not ready."

She looked at him oddly. "You are not?"

"No… Star, that was the whole point! That's why I need your help… I need to know more about Blackfire. What does she like, what doesn't she like? How should I ask her? What should I get her? Or should I even get her anything at all?" Smoke asked all these questions in rapid succession, throwing his hands despairingly into the air. "I need to know!"

Star looked at him sadly. "Smoke, I… I do not think I can help you. I know much less about my sister than you would expect. We never spent much time together in our childhood, and… we have seen each other only twice since then, before she came here with us."

"So you can't help me out at all?" Smoke said desperately. "I'm no good with this whole romantic thing, but… I… I really do want to get to know your sister, better… and maybe get her to like me…"

Starfire hovered in the air, deep in thought. She looked pityingly at Smoke, and then glanced back towards her room, where Blackfire currently was. Then, she looked down the hallway, where Beast Boy's (and now Terra's) room and Raven's room both were… And slowly, very gradually, a broad smile began to spread across her face…

"Smoke… I believe… that I have an idea." She whispered slowly, her emerald eyes shining mischievously, and giggling slightly.

Smoke looked at her firmly, a sad smirk on his face. "Star, at this point, I'll do _anything_ if it will get your sister to like me."

She leaned over and whispered something softly into his ear; he tilted his head toward her and listened intently. And then, HE started grinning, as well.

_**In The Bering Sea…**_

It was a dim, overcast afternoon… the limited light that made it's way through the clouds reflected off the sea's blue waters to give the very atmosphere a fluorescent, greenish quality… a slight fog was out today, and the wind was misty, making the waves white with foam.

"Zero, why did you bring me up here?" Jinx asked suspiciously, standing on the upper deck and shivering slightly. She was wearing a large, black, fur coat she'd bought for the trip, but she was still a bit chilled by the cool weather…

"I have a surprise for you…" The knight replied slyly. He smiled sympathetically. "Are you too cold? I have more robes down below deck…"

She shook her head, causing her bull-horn-like pigtails to wave about slightly in the misty breeze. "No, I'm all right. But what's the surprise…?"

Sub-Zero said nothing at first, but merely took her by the hand and turned her around. He then pointed at the vast expanse of blue water around them.

"Now, you might think I'm crazy, but… just sit down…" He motioned to a wooden chair he'd brought out of the captain's cabin "… And watch the water a few minutes… I think it's almost time…"

She blinked in surprise. "Almost time for _what_?"

"Oh, you'll see… did you bring your camera like I told you to?" he asked.

"Yes…" She reached into a pocket on her coat and produced a small digital camera. "But why do I need this…? You're confusing me!" She chided playfully.

"Just trust me, Jinx… If I'm right about the timing, you're in for one Hell of a show…" He chuckled and then walked into the Captain's cabin, leaving her alone on the deck.

Jinx shrugged and sat down. She had come to expect the unexpected from Sub-Zero and she figured that today was no different. She wondered with anticipation what the _'Surprise'_ he had was… and what did he mean about timing?

The enchantress sat there resting for a couple minutes. She closed her eyes and sighed happily as she felt the misty breeze brushing gently across her face. The only sounds were the slight foaming and hissing of the waves, the soft whistle of the wind, and the frothing and bubbling of the waters as they were split apart by the bow of the Fryse Wyrm, only to rush back together again once the ship had passed on it's way.

It was utterly peaceful… She was so glad she'd persuaded Robin to let them go on this little 'trip'. Not only for Sub-Zero's sake, but also for her's…

As she was listening intently, a sound struck her ears that was not like the others. It was… a bit like the wind, but even softer… it was a soft, moaning sound, almost a mournful cry. Deep and rumbling at first, it soon inflected to a higher pitch for a couple seconds and then slid slowly and fluidly back down… it echoed around her, giving the sound an unearthly quality…

Jinx sat up abruptly and her feline eyes snapped open in surprise. She had not expected this sound, and she didn't recognize it as one she'd heard before. It was very different from any that she knew.

It repeated… just slightly louder this time, and it seemed to reverberate off of the bottom of the ship all the way up to the tips of her ears… it was coming from below… like some massive, invisible horn playing a solemn note under the dark waters.

Soon… there were more… many more… a chorus of these strange, but hauntingly beautiful noises. Each one dissonant and clashing on it's own, and yet… all together, they seemed to produce a harmonized melody… and it was then that she was struck by the realization. These were not the sounds of her environment… these were living voices. Jinx didn't know how she knew, but…. She just knew.

Looking around in anxious surprise, Jinx saw nothing at all… at first.

Then, the sounds just… _stopped_. No warning at all… they didn't fade out slowly and gradually; they just… stopped.

The waters began to churn in the distance… around the ship they remained calm, but… it was as though all around her in the distance, someone had turned on a giant blender under the waters.

She strained her vision to see through the film of fog, and before the witch's awed, disbelieving eyes… she saw a dark shape begin to gradually rise out of the water… like another ship…

No… it wasn't another ship. It was too big for that… **MUCH** too big.

Then, more and more followed suit, the blurry, bluish-black shapes rising out of the water… and soon, there was a large group of them.

Jinx fumbled around in her pocket for the camera with shaky fingers, an odd mixture of excitement and fear fueling her motions. Finally, she managed to get a hold of it. Bringing it up in front of her face, she zoomed in as far as possible and focused on the nearest mass poking itself from the water…

But before she could snap a picture, something happened that almost made her drop the camera…

There, from the gigantic shape, a literal geyser of water suddenly shot up, maybe fifty, sixty feet into the air… it made a white, misty cloud and then fell back down and pelted the shape which had sent it hurtling up. The other large things followed once again followed suit and sent up spouts of air, water, and mist of their own… soon, the horizon was streaked with these giant spurts of white…

Jinx watched in amazement, her jaw hanging slack… and then, her mind finally clicked and she was stuck by realization… she now knew what these massive shapes were.

Sure enough, her idea was confirmed when one several of the giants submerged with a frothing of water… and then, abruptly leapt high into the air, revealing a pair of massive fins, and a long graceful tail that struck out at the air around it with a broad tip…

**_…_** **_Whales_**.

Soon, they were all leaping gracefully around in the ocean, landing with a splash that was loud even all the way to Jinx's ears… the explosion of water and foam when each of the titanic beasts landed was awe-inspiring. One would have thought there were bombs going off underwater…

Instinctively, Jinx brought the camera back up and started snapping pictures rapidly, getting shots of the whales jumping and spouting water, rolling in the ocean as if playing and diving back into their deep home…

Soon, the camera was out of space for pictures, but she didn't care… she had several more in her bags.

She fell back on the chair and watched silently. This was something that she would probably never see in her life again, so she wanted to catch every moment in her memory.

As she watched, she shivered slightly. This time, it wasn't from the cold… it was from the sheer magnificence of what she was seeing… and as she sat there watching, she felt a pair of arms gently hug her around the shoulders.

She turned around to see Zero kneeling there behind her, a pleased smile on his face. His long white hair whipped around in the breeze and his crimson eyes sparkled with reflections of the faint sunlight coming from in between the overcast clouds. The red sheen contrasted sharply with the sparkle of his blue armor, creating a striking effect.

"So…" He whispered huskily, grinning and showing off pearly whites. "… You like?"

She was at a complete loss for words, but managed a pleased sort of purr and nodded. She leaned back on his shoulder, and sighed contentedly. They sat there for what seemed, to them, like an eternity… relishing both the show of majesty nature had provided… and each other.

"We'll be there before long…" Zero said happily after a while. "Sometime tomorrow if all goes well."

"That's good." Jinx whispered with a smile.

"Yes…" He agreed. "I don't know about you, but… I for one enjoyed the trip up here so far as much as I'll probably enjoy getting there."

"Mm-hm…" She nodded lazily. "Me too…"

Without any further conversation, they leaned over and shared a long kiss… right before getting back to watching the whales.

_**Later On At The Jump City Mall…**_

Starfire was in an outdoors shop in the mall. She's told Raven, Terra, and Blackfire she'd had to go to the bathroom, but that had only been partially true. There was another reason she'd split up from the group. She turned to Smoke, who was standing nearby, looking curiously at a rack of camouflage hunting coats.

"Now remember… Stay here until Blackfire comes in. I will attempt to get her to go in here in some way… then, you will have your chance to talk to her." Star explained the plan one more time.

"Yeah, yeah… I got it. But how are you gonna convince her to come in here? I mean, I don't really think there's much here that'd appeal to her…" He glanced around and saw nothing but camouflage clothes, guns on racks, fishing poles, knives, and several deer heads and fish mounted on the wall. A large aquarium with bass fish in it was the only other thing in the store…

Smoke knew it would've been better to go in a clothes store or something where Star would have an easier time getting her sister to go… but #1. Then, Terra and Raven would probably go in with her, and Smoke didn't want to do this in front of them… and #2. He had a feeling he'd be pretty awkward looking in some girly store…

Star sighed and shrugged. "I am not entirely sure… but there must be _some_ way."

She started floating off to rejoin the group, but Smoke stopped her.

"Star, wait! I…"

She turned around to face him. "…Yes?"

He sighed, trying to get his words together. "Listen, Star I… I just wanted to thank you for helping me out like this… because there's no way I would've been able to just walk up and ask her…"

She beamed happily at him and nodded. "Of course! It was nothing that one friend would not do to assist another. And good luck!" She left out of the store, leaving him standing alone.

"Thanks…" The gunman said softly after her. "I'll need it…" He muttered dryly under his breath.

So, he proceeded to sit down on a bench by the fish tank and wait nervously. He could outgun any enemy. He knew how to build explosives strong enough to flambé a small country. He could make a headshot on a mouse from a half-mile away…

But he was utterly terrified right now.

As Smoke sat and stewed over his predicament, Starfire managed to make her way back to her friends… one of whom was talking up a storm, another keeping silent, and the last eyeing the other two warily.

"So where should we go when Starfire gets back?" Terra asked. "I vote the arcade… I brought a bunch of change, enough to share! Actually, it was Beast Boy's, but he said I could have it…"

"Uh… sounds good, I guess…" Blackfire said after a moment. Raven just shrugged and nodded.

When Blackfire saw Star floating back through the crowd towards them, she felt a pang of relief go through her. She couldn't explain why, but… being around the others without her around made her feel… awkward and nervous.

"What took so long?" Terra asked. "You've been gone, like… 10 minutes!"

"Erm…I…. Merely got lost." Star said half-heartedly, unable to think of any better explanation. Raven cocked an eyebrow skeptically, but remained silent.

"So, ah… shall we continue? I believe I saw some interesting stores in that direction…" Star motioned towards the direction she'd come from.

"**YEAH**! That's the way the arcade is, too! Let's go!" Terra cheered, dragging Raven and Blackfire along with her as she set off after Starfire.

They made their way in that direction; all the while Star was desperately trying to think of some excuse that would get her sister to go in that store where Smoke was… She could only think of one possibility…

"Um… Sister, perhaps you would be interested in seeing some native species of Earth fish?" Star asked hesitantly.

This brought Blackfire completely out of her funk. "…_What_?"

"Fish! There is a store nearby that displays an aquarium of Earth fish… I believe they are called, erm…" she paused unable to remember. "… _Base_? Or, _Beau_?"

"Bass?" Terra supplied.

"Yes, bass! That is it…" Star smiled sheepishly. "They are most lovely creatures, if you care for a look…"

Blackfire blinked a few times. 'Well… _THAT_ was random…' she thought. But hey, maybe it'd be good to get some time on her own, so…

"Sure… I'll go take a look. Where are they?" She asked after a moment of thought.

Beaming, Star pointed over to a small shop with a camo tarp over the entrance, and a green neon sign bearing the moniker, **_'Outdoors Specialties'_**…

She started towards it, but stopped when she realized that Starfire was heading off with the others. "You coming, Sis?" She asked after a moment.

"Oh, um… I shall catch up with you in a moment. I wish to see this arcade of the game playing…" Then, before Blackfire could inquire further, she floated off with Terra and Raven.

"… Well…" Blackfire muttered. "This better be some fish…"

In the store, Smoke was in the back reading a monster truck magazine… He had grown weary of just sitting and waiting, so he'd decided to preoccupy himself while he waited. But he was so engrossed in a picture of an auto called, 'Grave Digger', he didn't even notice a Tamaranean with long black hair enter the small store…

Blackfire was looking curiously at the fish in the tank… they were so… puny. At least, compared to the fish on Tamaran, most of which were huge. These Earth fish, did, however have a certain beauty to them, especially the deep green scales… but still, why had Star insisted she come in here? She'd gotten the distinct feeling that there was something her sister had not told her.

She suddenly saw a familiar looking shape in the back corner, holding a magazine on it's side so that a poster could unfold. The poster itself caught her eye… it looked to be some sort of massive Earth automobile, with tires almost bigger than the body… green and black patterns covered it, along with the name _"_**GRAVE** **DIGGER**_"_ painted on the side in bold, blood-dripping letters. Intrigued, she walked up for a closer look…

Smoke was just beginning to admire the huge tires, when a familiarly feminine voice came from behind his head…

"Pardon me… but what is that?"

Smoke stood dumbly for a second, as the realization of whom the voice belonged to sunk in…

He whipped around wide-eyed, and had to contain a yelp. Blackfire recognized Smoke instantly after he'd turned around.

"Oh! Uh, Smoke…. I'm sorry; I didn't realize it was you… Wait… I thought you stayed at the Tower?" She asked quizzically.

"Uh…I…" He stammered, unable to take his gaze off of the fog-gray eyes in front of him… he mentally bashed himself with the butt of his shotgun. "I took the humvee…" He lied quickly. "… Besides, I figured it would be nice to get out and about a while."

"Yeah…" She nodded. "But… Seriously, what is that you're looking at? It's… awesome…"

"Oh…This?" He held up the mag, aptly titled 'Monster Truck Mania'. "I was just looking at it… yeah, it's pretty cool. Monster trucks…"

"Monster trucks?" Blackfire asked, enamored by the sound of the words. "Like, giant Earth trucks…?"

"Yeah… They're like regular trucks, except with much more powerful engines and big-assed tires on the—" Smoke stopped short and clapped a hand over his mouth, realizing what he'd said. He looked at Blackfire fearfully. 'Nice one, _Casanova_… run your potty mouth… **THAT'LL** get her attention.' Smoke berated himself mentally.

Blackfire stared for a moment… and then, burst out into laughter. He looked at her in surprise; he'd been expecting a much different reaction.

"I… I'm sorry, it's just…" She was still laughing hard. "The look on your face when you said that…. Was priceless!" she giggled, referring to his embarrassedly blushing visage.

"Uh, I mean… I'm really, really sorry 'bout that… I… guess I should watch my language." Smoke apologized meekly.

"It's no problem… I tend to run my mouth without thinking sometimes, too. Besides, I've met Space Pirates who can use 37 different profanities in one sentence… I've hardly got virgin ears." She joked with a casual shrug.

Smoke did some quick, bemused mental calculations… he didn't even **KNOW** 37 curses… maybe they had that many in alien languages…

"So anyway, is this a sport on Earth?" Blackfire asked interestedly, pointing to the magazine Smoke still held.

"Uh-huh… it seems cool… I've never been to one myself, but… always wanted to…" Smoke said with a sigh. "Living in a tube in a lab… doesn't give you much opportunity for recreation, I'm afraid." He said.

Blackfire, who had still been giggling silently up to that point, quickly took on a much more melancholy look. "Smoke… what you said to me once… about… knowing what it was like to be called a 'freak'… what did you mean?"

Smoke explained all about how he was really a genetic construct. How he'd been built as a 'secret weapon' prototype, but had been marked for termination and replacement when he'd developed free will and emotions. About how Wagner had hit him with a tranquilizer dart, and he'd fled to Titan's Tower in search of sanctuary. Ten minutes later, the words were still ringing in her ears.

Blackfire's eyes were wide and a hand had been placed over her gaping mouth. "Smoke…I…" She seemed lost for words. "That's…_horrible_!" She abruptly felt like a bitch for having been complaining about **her** situation.

He shrugged casually. "S'ok… anyways, it's like I told Zero… what's past is past."

"Yeah… I guess so…" Blackfire said softly… the statement made her think about her own past… could she really put it behind her as easily as Smoke had his? Putting that from her mind, she focused on the magazine again.

Blackfire sat down on the bench, and he sat down next to her. They sat like that for nearly thirty minutes flipping through the mag, marveling at the size and power of the monster trucks in it.

"Wow…" Blackfire said in awe, looking at a picture of a truck named _'Samson'_ leaping over a stack of cars… **FLAMING** cars… "I'd **LOVE** to see one of these up close!"

Smoke was about to agree, when he saw something behind Blackfire's head that made his heart go into overdrive… a large poster taped near the counter, that read:

_**'ATTENTION ALL EXTREME MOTOR SPORTS FANS!**_

_The seventeenth annual 'Metallic Madness' Monster Truck Rally is coming **THIS** **SATURDAY** to Jump City Stadium!_

_And a special invitation has been issued to any and all amateur truckers who suspect they've got what it takes to run with the big dogs! Challengers will be allowed to sign up for the event on a first come, first serve basis!_

_**DO NOT MISS IT**! Tickets are on sale in any auto parts, sports, or outdoors shop!**'**_

A small container of tickets was under the poster, with a lock on the lid.

This was it. This was the chance Smoke needed. And after it had fallen into his lap like this, he'd be danged if he was going to miss it.

Taking a deep breath to fortify himself, Smoke spoke hesitantly. "Say, um… Blackfire… are you… _free_, this Saturday?"

Caught completely off guard by this question, she whipped her head around to face him, her blue-gray eyes going wide with surprise. "I… I think so… but… why?"She stammered.

"Well, uh…" Smoke gulped silently. He could almost feel the steam coming from his ears… "I… that is, if you want to… would you want to… go to the Monster Truck rally with me?" he asked, pointing to the sign.

She looked back and forth from the poster to Smoke… poster to Smoke… Finally, she went red as a beet. "…You? With…_me_? You're serious?"

Smoke nodded, and waited. This was the moment of truth… or the moment of getting slapped. Whichever came first, he prayed the former…

"Smoke, I… I don't know what to say… but… I'd **LOVE** to!"

The gunner's pair of gold-hazel eyes snapped open instantly, and he looked as though he'd just got triple sevens on a slot machine.

"…_Really_?"

"**Sure**!"

"Great! Because the tickets are right behind you for $15 apiece…"

"Er… do you have fifteen dollars?"

"Better… I've got _**thirty**_."

Smoke walked over to the sales clerk and paid for two tickets. Then, he placed one in his overall pocket, and handed the other to Blackfire…

"You go ahead and get back to the others… I'll go ahead and get back to the Tower."

Blackfire nodded, and started to leave… but before she did so, she turned to Smoke and gave him a quick hug around the waist. "I can't wait!" she said excitedly, before letting go and hovering out of the store.

Smoke stood there like he'd just been hit in the head with a sledgehammer… before grinning dumbly and stumbling out of the store as if drunk…

Smoke made his way over to a nearby Auto Parts store on the other side of the mall. Once in, he approached the clerk.

"S'cuse me, Mr., but… Would you happen to have any…uh…_Large_, tires?"

The man looked at Smoke oddly, before motioning for him to follow. He led him over to a large metal door, and pressed a button, causing it to open up into a small garage… in the corner lay a pile of massive, 66-inch tires.

"Those are the biggest we got." The man said. "But they don't come cheap…"

"I'll take four of 'em… and every can of black, red, yellow, orange, and gray paint you got."

As Smoke started shelling out cash to an amazed clerk, neither of them noticed a small spider on the wall… but the spider had noticed them. It was a robotic spider with tiny camera lenses covering it's face…

It clicked it's pincers a couple times, and then scuttled into a crack on the wall.

It crawled literally for miles at high speeds under the ground, along pipes, through air conditioning and heating vents, and sewage tunnels.

Finally, it reached what looked like a tiny garage door in the sewers with an equally tiny scanner next to it. The robotic arachnid scuttled up, and scanned itself… the little door cranked open.

It entered into what looked like a huge, gleaming metal laboratory with flashing buttons, glowing screens, turning gears, sliding levers, and flipping switches as far as the eye could see…

It scuttled along the floor and hooked itself to a computer monitor, which in turn was connected to a large, chemical-filled tube containing a human brain. Everything that the tiny spy had recorded played out on the screen…

The brain almost seemed to pulse in response to the words, 'This Saturday', and 'Jump City Stadium'…

The brain actually glowed green for a moment… and as if to respond, the floor panels slid open, and a large platform rose up… with the same heavily armed mech suit as seen before on it.

If organs could speak, that brain would've been cackling maniacally right about now…

**_Well, Smoke's officially got himself a date. Things couldn't possibly go wrong… or so he thinks. And what is he planning to do with all that stuff, anyway…?_**

**_Besides all that, Sub-Zero and Jinx are drawing ever closer to Norblitz… but will the trip be as peaceful as they think? Who knows?_**

**_Review if you've got the time…_**

**_-- The Mad Phantom…_**


	13. Chapter Twelve

_Disclaimer: Obviously, I don't own the Teen Titans… As a matter of fact, I don't own very much at all…Oh well…_

**_Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Twelve_**

Cyborg was worried. For a while now, there had been a lot of… strange noise… coming from the garage. He wasn't so much worried about the garage as he was worried about his car. He hoped Smoke was being careful down there, whatever he was doing.

Smoke must've been working on something, something big, because when Cy had gone down to investigate the sounds, he'd found a makeshift cardboard sign with red, spray painted words, "**Very Busy Right Now… Please Do Not Disturb**".

The other Titans were a bit worried by the fact that Smoke had skipped several meals recently… although the noises coming from within the garage let them know he was still alive and kicking.

Come to think of it… The last time Cyborg had seen Smoke, he'd been carrying numerous, large bags full of what looked like paint cans and spare parts… and then, he'd seen him rolling some huge tires into the garage… What was he doing in there?

"He said he was gonna make some tune-ups on that humvee, but… what kinda tune-ups was he talkin' about…?" Cy muttered curiously to himself.

Cy looked curiously at the sign on the garage door for a moment, before sighing, shrugging, and turning to walk off… until…

"…Hey….Hey, Cy…"

Cyborg stopped dead in his tracks, and turned to see none other than the gunman himself poking his head out of the entranceway…

"It's about time, man! Do you know everybody's been worried 'bout you in there? What've you been—"

Smoke held up a hand to silence him and gave an apologetic grin. "I know, I know. I've been trying to keep this under wraps… but now that I'm done… I'll _show_ you what I've been doing in here…"

With a Cheshire cat grin, he motioned for Cyborg to follow and went back in. Cy glanced warily at the entrance for a moment… before following slowly, bracing himself for any damage that might have been inflicted on his precious T-Car.

Once in, Cyborg's eyes immediately drifted to said car, and he was immensely relieved to see it in perfectly good condition. He let out a soft "_Phew_!", and Smoke looked at him in amusement.

"What? Worried I'd blow up your car?" He teased, but in a very chummy way.

"Well, no….but…" Cy seemed unable to explain, and felt a little guilty for having doubted Smoke's responsibility.

"Don't worry about it…" Smoke said waving his hand. "I wouldn't have trusted me either."

Cy looked around… he could've sworn that something was… missing. After a moment, he realized what it was.

"Yo, Smoke… where's your truck at?" He asked curiously.

Grinning even wider, with a strangely manic gleam in his eyes, Smoke pointed over to the far left corner of the garage, where a large… actually, an utterly massive lump sat under a camouflage-painted leather tarp. From the looks of it, whatever was under that tarp was about… 12 feet tall…

Striding up with a soft _'click'_ of cowboy boots on metallic flooring, Smoke approached the object and carefully took a corner of the tarp in both hands. "Okay… 3… 2… 1…" Smoke counted under his breath. Then, with a soft grunt, he gave a mighty yank that pulled the tarp from the concealed mass.

For a few brief moments, all Cyborg could see was a rippling mass of camouflage as the tarp flew away from whatever it had been hiding. When this cleared, he looked back… and gasped sharply.

In front of him stood Smoke's truck… a very _tricked_ _out_ truck.

No longer the drab, militaristic camo color, it was painted jet black, with a pattern of fiercely burning red, yellow, and orange flames on the hood and the back. A pair of broad, gray, racing stripes ran all the way down both sides of the giant auto in a straight line.

A long antenna protruded from the hood, with a large, decorative, antennae cover shaped like a bomb with a fuse, with a fanged smiley face on it. Furthermore, Smoke had customized the hood in such a way that the engine stuck up from an opening in the hood slightly. Also, a pair of neon green fuzzy dice hung from the rear view mirror.

The revamped army truck's tires were huge… large enough to literally roll over just about anything else on the road. A long row of spotlights was mounted on the top, near the front. Large, polished exhaust pipes jutted out from the back of the truck, and slashed upward at a sharp angle.

Various stickers were placed on several locations, carrying slogans such as '**I don't call 911! **(complete with a pistol logo in the background)', '**Get in, shut up, and hang on!**', and the largest of all, saying, '**Give a man a bullet, and he'll want a gun. Give a man a gun, and he'll give away the bullets.**'

Last, but not least, the license plate on the rear of the truck read: '**_MY TANK_**'

As Cyborg stood and stared in awe, the drool almost dripping from his slack-jawed mouth, Smoke crossed his arms and leaned on one of the truck's titanic tires with a pleased smirk.

"Well, sorry Cy old bud… but I think I just out-pimped your ride!"

Finding his voice, Cy managed to snap out of his trance. "Holy… " He still seemed at a lost for words, though. "Smoke, you… you… built this?"

"Yeah!" The young gunman declared proudly. "Of course, after tonight I'm gonna replace the tires with normal sized ones…."

"But… What's tonight?" Cyborg asked with mixed confusion and curiosity.

Smoke's grin faded somewhat, and he instead got a very suspicious sort of look on his face, as though he were hiding a conspiracy. "…Can you keep a secret, Cy?" He asked softly after a moment.

Cyborg's one organic eye blinked bemusedly, and he shrugged. "Uh… Sure. I don't see why not…"

Smoke reached into the pocket on his leather jacket, and pulled out a rolled up piece of paper. He slowly and carefully unfurled it, and tossed it to Cy, who caught it easily and held it up to look at it.

It was the poster for the Monster Truck Rally.

"That, my mechanical compadre, is my date location for tonight…"

Cy looked at him with something close to a grin. "Wait… Date?" Smoke nodded. "Heh… Smooth one Romeo… So, if I may be so bold, who's the lucky girl?" The bionic teen asked teasingly.

Smoke's smile seemed to dampen somewhat, and he blushed heavily. After darting his eyes around nervously for a moment, he walked up to Cy and leaned up to whisper something into his ear. Cy's one good eye nearly bugged out of his head.

"Dude… You got a date with _Blackfire_?" He demanded incredulously. Smoke tapped his index fingers together nervously and nodded with a blush.

Cy was not sure what to say… on one hand, he wanted to congratulate Smoke, but on the other hand, he feared for his friends safety should his piss Blackfire off…

"Uh… Well… Good luck with that, dawg." He said simply after a minute.

"Thanks…" Smoke said with a sigh. Then, he suddenly brightened up somewhat. "Oh, and by the way… just in case anything happens, I like to be prepared, so… I installed some…" Smoke paused in search of the appropriate words. "… 'Just-In-Case' features…"

"Just in Case, features…?" Cy repeated, puzzled.

Smoke smiled, and pulled the keys out of his jacket pocket. He pressed a small, red button with a biohazard logo…

Instantly, there came a loud, grating, shrill cranking from the huge vehicle. The Top of the truck slowly began sliding apart, revealing something concealed within the roof…

A thirteen-foot long gun mounted on top…

Cy stared in surprise while Smoke dashed over and leaped on top of the truck. He grinned and patted the top of the gun affectionately.

"This…" He explained. "Is a 2 gauge punt gun… y'know, like a giant shotgun? And just in case anybody decides to make trouble… this'll stop 'em. I configured it to where it shoots a giant steel slug that's basically like a mini tank shell…"

Smoke turned to his stunned friend with misty eyes and uttered one simple sentence…

"Man… I've outdone myself, doncha think?"

Cy grinned. "Think? Bro, I know. No offense, but… unless you're counting on getting attacked by some kind of dinosaur… that much firepower might be a bit…" Cy paused to think. "…_Excessive_, huh?"

Smoke smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "True… but hey, you never know…"

"Well, I'm gonna go tell everybody you're all right. But don't worry… I won't tell 'em about your little 'project'."

"Good… Thanks, Cy."

"No prob."

Smoke glanced back toward his room. "Well… I guess I should be getting ready… It's getting late."

The gunner started towards his room…

"Hey, wait a sec!"

Smoke stopped and turned back towards Cyborg. "Huh?"

"Just outta curiosity… what've you been doin' for meals all this time?"

Smoke grinned bemusedly, and embarrassedly scratched the back of his head. "Well…" Deciding it'd be easier to show him than to tell him, he opened up the door to his room…

… Upon which point a deluge of large, empty, **_Cheetos_** bags fell out.

Cy let out a loud sigh, and walked back out, as Smoke proceeded to wade through the sea of cheeto bags to his room.

_**A Few Hours Later…**_

Blackfire was looking herself over in the mirror in Star's room. She had opted to borrow one of Star's outfits again, which was much like her own except purple instead of black, and minus the metallic under armor.

Satisfied with her appearance, she started to leave out the door… but when she opened it, she found Smoke standing there with his hand raised as though he'd been about to knock.

"Oh! Sorry, didn't know you were…" Blackfire started to apologize, but stopped short when she got a good look at Smoke. He wore the same clothes as usual, but… she noticed that his brown, spiky hair was not quite as haphazard as usual, and also seemed to possess an extra sheen… like he'd just combed and washed it. Also, she wasn't sure, but… she could've sworn that she detected just a hint of what smelled like cologne…

"Um, I… I didn't know you were out here…" She stuttered. A slight blush spread across her face, and the faint scent of his cologne made her feel… light-headed, for some reason.

"No problem…" He assured with a shrug and a toothy grin. "Say… This may sound last minute, but… would you mind riding with Cy to the stadium? In his car? I would take you, but… I had some… business come up so I might be a tad bit late getting there, and I wouldn't want you missing anything."

Blackfire took a moment to digest all this information. After a few moments, she nodded. "Sure… that sounds fine, I guess." She wondered what he meant by 'business', but decided not to ask.

"Great! Don't worry, I'll catch up…"

And with that, he was gone, just as quickly as he had entered.

Blackfire glanced nervously at the clock on the wall. "Well… Guess I better go find Cyborg…" She muttered. She still wondered, though… what kind of business had Smoke been talking about? She just couldn't shake the feeling that Smoke had something else up his leathery sleeve…

**_An Hour Later, At The Jump City Stadium…_**

Blackfire turned around one last time to thank Cyborg for giving her a ride… seeing as how it was so last minute. He just nodded and drove back off. Blackfire didn't realize it, but Smoke and Cyborg had already planned this out ahead of time…

Taking a quick glance at her ticket, Blackfire walked up to the entrance to the stadium. She stared at the huge, arched entranceway, impressed by both it's size and architecture. She didn't know that Earth had stuff like this.

The stadium itself was a gigantic, dome-shaped building with an open top. Large spotlight posts and loudspeakers covered every inch of the top edges. There was no telling how many scores of people it could seat, but tonight it was absolutely packed.

"Excuse me…" Blackfire approached a worker. "But… which seat is this?" She handed him the ticket to look at.

"Hmm… A45… That'll be the front row, 45th seat down." The worker said, pointing down to an empty seat on the front row.

'…Front row? Wow… I didn't know Smoke gave me a front row seat… I wonder where his seat is?" She thought. She had kind of hoped that he'd be sitting next to her…

Instantly, Blackfire stopped dead in her tracks as if stunned. 'What did I just think…?' She demanded mentally. She'd… thought she hoped he'd sit next to her.

Why did she think that…? She wasn't even sure. Although… It would've been nice to sit next to him. After all, he… he wasn't bad looking. And he'd asked her on a date, hadn't he? So, was it really so odd for her to think things like that?

Shaking her head and attempting to clear her thoughts, Blackfire made her way down to the seat and sat down… It would be starting soon, and she didn't want to miss an instant.

Meanwhile…

"Excuse me, Miss…" Smoke approached a clerk working at the registration booth. "But, I'm here to register for the show, if there's any room left…"

The girl took a clipboard from under the counter, and read down the list carefully.

"Well…" She said softly after a second. "… Actually, it seems that we've still got one empty spot left. Are you interested in competing?"

"Yep! S'what I came here for!"

The girl looked at him doubtfully. "Do you have an appropriate vehicle?"

"If by 'appropriate', you mean a souped up truck with giant tires and an engine powerful enough to tow the Titanic… then yes'm, I'm set."

She looked at him oddly for a moment before shrugging and grabbing a ballpoint pen out of her pocket. "Okay… your name, please?"

"Smoke." She looked at him funny again. "Sounds odd, I know… but seriously, that's my name… don't have a last name, just… Smoke."

"Your address?"

"Well, uh… you know the giant building shaped like a 'T'….?"

"Titan's Tower?"

"Yeah… I'm staying with them right now."

Once again, the clerk looked doubtful, but decided not to ask. "Finally… what's your vehicle's alias?"

"Er… Alias?"

"You know… all the constestant's vehicles have names like, 'Samson', or 'Bigfoot', or 'Grave Digger'… what's yours?"

Smoke looked deep in thought for a moment… he hadn't counted on this. He had to think up a name, and quickly… preferably a cool one, but…

Suddenly, He had an idea.

"Just put down… Desperado."

While all this was going on, Blackfire was still waiting for the show to start, trying her best not to lose her hearing due to the noise all around her. However, everyone went silent all at once when the loudspeakers flared to life.

"Hello, Jump City! And welcome to the Seventeenth Annual Metallic Madness Monster Truck Rally!" The announcer shouted enthusiastically, eliciting a deafening roar from the frenzied crowd. "Tonight, We'll be having every professional Monster Truck in the business… legends whom need no introduction. However… Tonight is a special night, in the fact that special challengers have also been recruited! So, without further adieu, I will introduce our amateur truckers!"

Huge garage type doors began cranking open on the far side of the stadium, underneath the press box. It was dimmed heavily in there; it was difficult to tell what was inside…

Suddenly, the audience heard the sound of an enormous engine cranking from within. A moment later, a huge truck came roaring out, huge tires kicking up blinding clouds of dust. It looked like a giant pickup truck, except that it was deep green all over, except for the hood and small areas above the tires that seemed to be covered in some kind of transparent material that revealed silvery circuitry underneath… very hi-tech looking. A large flag on the antennae bore a logo with the letters, 'G' and 'M' on either side.

"Our first contestant tonight is actually a team… that's right, this dynamic duo may just have the talent to take down even the pros! They're mind! They're muscle! They're both rolled into one! Allow me to introduce… Gizmo Giovanni, and Mammoth Mascaras… Along with their truck, The Stinger!"

(A/N: Not sure if those are their real last names… but I've seen Giovanni in other fics, and I just pulled Mascaras off the top of my head.)

Sure enough, the two thugs we know and love stepped out of either side of the huge truck and stood on either side. Gizmo floated in midair with his jetpack, rubbing his hands together eagerly, and Mammoth just stood hunched over cracking his knuckles.

They got back in after a couple minutes of applause from the crowd, and drove over to the other side of the stadium, where they parked.

Another minute passed, and another engine roared to life from within the dark confines of the garage… possibly even louder than the first.

Without warning, another truck pulled out of the garage… one that looked like an old, scrapped eighteen-wheeler that someone good with mechanics had cobbled back together and souped up. Large tires all the way down from the cab to the trailer spun wildly, and the massive truck parked in the center of the stadium… right before letting out an impossibly loud and echoing honk from it's horn, and bellowing smoke from it's dual exhaust pipes.

The cab had been painted black with a skull-and-crossbones design on it, flanked on both sides by the letters **_'J.R.'_**. The huge trailer had graffiti painted all the way down the sides in random patterns and loud colors, and the edges of the trailer were adorned with strips of black metal studded with silver spikes.

"Ladies and gentlemen… we have another special treat for you tonight! Street-wise… smart-mouthed… foul-mouthed… mechanic extraordinaire… our next contestant is all this and more. He's rude, he's crude, he's got an attitude longer than the Texas state line… Heeeeere's Johnny! Johnny Rancid, that is, and his homemade monster truck, The Junkyard Undertaker!"

A thuggish looking, tall, muscular teenaged boy with dank gray skin and greasy black hair stepped out of the driver's seat with a swagger. Bowing as the audience applauded some more, he stepped back in after a minute, and cranked the monstrous eighteen-wheeler back up, driving over to where Mammoth and Gizmo had parked.

Finally, there were a couple minutes of excited chatter amongst the crowd. Blackfire sighed worriedly. "Where's Smoke? He's gonna miss it if he doesn't hurry up…" And if he'd missed it when he'd been the one to pay for it anyway, she'd feel pretty damn guilty.

There was another engine noise… but instead of going nuts again…. The crowd went dead silent.

The rumbling that was coming out of the garage… was not like the other two. It sounded like some massive creature opening it's jaws and yawning… It was twice as loud as the other two's had been, and much deeper and more gutteral. After a moment, billowing clouds of smoke began to drift out of the garage.

And then, it was out. It did not hall ass out, as the other two had done… no, instead it took it's sweet time, rolling out lazily, kicking up rocks and dirt. It was Smoke's truck, flame paint job, fuzzy dice, bumper stickers and all.

"Ladies and Gentlemen… our final contestant tonight… a last minute entry, whom we know little about. A stranger, who emerges from nowhere with ambition to overthrow the Monster Truck world as we know it…"

Blackfire stared at the truck in awe… it was absolutely awesome, even compared to the other two. "Damn! I can't wait to see who drives THAT!" She purred. "Smoke's missing out! If only he could see this…"

"… The only name this mysterious trucker gave us… **Smoke**."

Blackfire choked on the soda she'd bought from a drink vendor earlier.

"And his tricked out monster… _Desperado_."

With eyes the size of dinner plates, Blackfire managed to look down at the truck… and saw the door on the driver's side swing slowly open… and a hand wearing a black leather sleeve, that she'd recognize anywhere, opening it up.

And there stood Smoke, in all his glory grinning like a kid in a candy store. He deliberately looked straight up to the front row, right up into Blackfire's eyes… and waved.

If Blackfire hadn't of drank so much soda and had so much sugar in her system, she would've passed out on the spot.

**_Heheh… Well, that's the end of another Chapter. I hope to update soon, and I promise the next chapter's going to have more action than this one._**

**_By the way… to Slash Dragon, Clone Of Koga (or whoever can answer this question)…_**

**_I knew that there was a Mortal Kombat character named Sub-Zero… however, is there ANOTHER one named Smoke? If so, I honestly didn't intend for both my OC's to be named after MK characters… I guess It just turned out that way… I'll have to do some research and make sure the OC in my 3rd Fic doesn't wind up with a MK name…_**

**_Oh, and also… Next chapter, I'll be revealing a little bit more about what's been going on in Zero's Island whilst he's been gone… and I'll go ahead and tell you that this is NOT gonna turn out to be the vacation they thought…_**

**_Oh yeah… to Metal Overlord: Yeah, Dr. Wheelo WAS sort've the inspiration I got the idea for Myntull from… as for the name 'Myntull', it's a play off of the word 'Mental'._**

**_Anywho… Read and Review!_**

**_--The Mad Phantom…_**


	14. Chapter Thirteen

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans aren't mine by any means._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Thirteen.**_

Blackfire glared down in bemused shock at the overall-clad figure waving up at her. What the Hell was he thinking? Although she had to admit to herself… If he was trying to surprise her, he'd done an excellent job. But what if he got hurt? What if he crashed? What if…

She shook her head to put these thoughts from her mind. Besides… why should she be so worried, she insisted to herself. After all, he was just… he was just…

For some reason, she couldn't finish that sentence. She wanted to insist to herself that he was just another guy, just another person that really wasn't that important… but she couldn't. Her mind involuntarily drifted to the kindness and pity he'd shown her when they'd first met, and his reluctance to fight her… even when she'd attempted to kill him.

She stared down and him, and unsure what to do, finally just slid back in her seat and waited… she didn't know what Smoke had in his head to do, but… It was too late to stop him now.

Smoke bowed through the audience's applause and as he climbed back up into the driver's seat, he grinned widely and blew a quick kiss straight at Blackfire; causing her to blush fiercely… she prayed to X'hal that he couldn't tell from that distance…

"Now that our guest contestants have been introduced…" Blared the loudspeakers, "… The show will start in roughly… thirty minutes..."

As the announcer finished his sentence, the trucks… Gizmo and Mammoth's Stinger, Johnny Rancid's Junkyard Undertaker, and Smoke's Desperado… revved back up and drove in the garage in the same order that they'd come out…

_**In The Drivers' Lobby…**_

Mammoth sat down at a table full of food that the stadium had provided for the drivers, and started chowing down on hotdogs.

"Don't eat too much, weenie-breath…" The tiny genius warned his friend. "I don't want you getting sick while I'm in the truck with you!"

"Aww, put a sock in it, Gizmo… I ain't gone get sick." Mammoth grunted back, downing two hotdogs in one bite… without chewing.

Gizmo just grumbled back an answer under his breath, and started making some adjustments on the engine of their truck.

All was relatively peaceful, until…

"(munch, munch) Damn, these are really good!"

Mammoth choked on the hotdog he was chewing, and looked incredulously over to his right.

There was… that guy. The last one, with the tricked out army truck. Mammoth, even with his impressive senses, hadn't even noticed him sit down.

"What the—Where did you come from?" Mammoth demanded.

Not even looking up from his plate, Smoke pointed over to his truck. "Ah baz mahcin, zum lahs monutt ahjzuzmuntz…" He muttered with his mouth full.

"…Uh… What the Hell did you just say?" Mammoth grunted confusedly.

Smoke gulped loudly and belched, wiping his mouth with his shirt. "I said… I was just makin' some last minute adjustments…" He clarified.

Mammoth glared at the new… and much smaller… diner. Who did he think he was, just suddenly sitting by him like that?

"So… what's your name, anyway?" Mammoth rumbled after a minute.

"Smoke…" The gunner replied without skipping a beat.

"No, your real name…" Mammoth insisted.

"Heh… That **_is_** my real name, Bubba." Smoke chuckled.

Mammoth stared dumbly for a second, right before grabbing Smoke by the collar of his jacket and lifting him up one handed. "_My_… _name_… _is_… **_MAMMOTH_**!" He said, snarling the first three, and roaring the last one, causing Smoke's face to flap slightly with the force of it.

Smoke appeared relatively unfazed. He brushed his shoulder off, and wiped a bit of hotdog bun from his face. "Right… sorry 'bout that. Just kiddin', y'know." Smoke said after a moment, looking as though he was fighting the urge to pump Mammoth full of ammo.

After grumbling for a minute, Mammoth plopped Smoke back down on the stool he'd been sitting on. "Yeah…" he muttered.

"Y'know… that's a nice ride, ya got there." Smoke said, attempting to make conversation with the behemoth. "Very… technical lookin'." He added, eying the shimmering circuitry underneath the transparent areas.

"Gizmo built it." Mammoth said gruffly, pointing over to the pipsqueak in question, who was just finishing up under the hood of The Stinger.

"He must be quite the mechanic." Smoke complemented.

"Yep… Smartest guy I know." Mammoth grunted in response. Maybe this new guy wasn't so bad after all…

They were interrupted by the loudspeakers on the ceiling. "All drivers, report to the garage in your vehicles, immediately! The first event it about to start!"

Smoke eyed the speakers pensively, his normally casual expression becoming a lot more serious suddenly. "This one's for you, Blackfire…" He whispered under his breath.

"…_Huh_?" Mammoth asked.

Smoke gasped. He'd forgotten that this guy was still beside him. "Err… Nothin'… C'mon, we better get going."

Mammoth nodded and started to make his way over to Gizmo and The Stinger. "Fair warning Smoke… We won't be going easy on anybody out there… including you." He rumbled.

To his surprise, Smoke grinned and laughed. "Good! That's the spirit! Consider it mutual, pal…" Smoke held out his hand. "So… May the best driver win."

Mammoth eyed his hand suspiciously for a moment… but eventually shook his hand, and was extremely surprised at how strong this scrawny little guy was. Why, he was probably as strong as Mammoth, judging from his powerful grip.

"Later, Bu—Err, I mean, Mammoth! And tell runt over there I said good luck!" He said, motioning at Gizmo. Then, he slapped Mammoth on the back in a chummy fashion, and ran off toward Desperado without further conversation.

Blackfire was waiting on the edge of her seat. Now that she'd gotten over the initial shock of seeing Smoke competing, she had to wonder how he'd fair against the pros… and then again, those other guys hadn't exactly seemed like pushovers, either.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Our first event… Flaming Ford Fury!" The announcer blared, causing the crowd to begin cheering wildly.

Sure enough, when the blinding spotlight shone down on the massive arena, Blackfire gasped at what she saw. Several side-by-side rows of Ford Trucks that had been set on fire…

Blackfire watched for about half an hour and cheered as she watched an array of varied Monster Trucks leap over the rows of flaming trucks… some of them made the leap clearly, and others hit the tops of the trucks and rolled off… which, honestly, made it that much more entertaining to watch the huge trucks crush their smaller counterparts effortlessly, the loud noise of sizzling flames and crunching metal echoing around the stadium.

Finally, The Stinger pulled up. Gizmo seemed to be in the driver's seat, in a special seat that allowed him to reach the wheel. Mammoth was riding shotgun, with his meaty elbow dangling lazily out of the open window.

With a revving up of the engine, The Stinger hauled ass forward towards the ramp… but at the last second, the chuckling diminutive genius pushed a glowing button on the center of the steering wheel. Without warning, a large jet thruster emerged from the back of the truck.

The thing flared to life just as they hit the ramp, causing them to fly out and over the flaming trucks effortlessly, at which point the jet died back down and the truck rolled to a stop.

After a second of stunned silence, the audience cheered loudly, impressed by the technology.

The next truck out was Johnny Rancid's Junkyard Undertaker. He also put a lead foot down on the pedal and started laying on the horn, causing most of the crowd to cover their ears.

His massive eighteen-wheeler didn't get too far off the ramp before it's massive trailer dragged it back down onto the flaming trucks… but they were utterly flattened under Rancid's massive tires. The crowd went wild, cheering him on as he turned the event into a destruction session. Johnny even went so far as to hit the brakes and then kick the thing into reverse, rolling over the burning trucks again and again before finally pulling off… the crowd loved it.

Finally, he drove off and Smoke pulled out in his Desperado.

His engine cranked to life, and he drove at high speed toward the ramp… at which point he flicked a switch on the dashboard that read, 'hydraulics'.

Suddenly, his front tires jacked themselves up just before he pulled off the ramp, launching him off into the air… he came down with a massive slam and crushed a pair of fiery trucks. Then, all four tires popped up and launched him upwards again. Coming down to crush more trucks, he jacked the tires again upon landing, and did this pattern over and over… causing his truck to literally bounce on the row of trucks, pulling off spins and 360's in midair…

Finally, he landed with a crash on the ground after the row of destroyed trucks. After the dust cleared, Blackfire leaned forward in her seat, anxiously looking into the windshield trying to see if Smoke was okay… seeing him spin and turn in the air like that worried her.

Sure enough, Smoke was just fine and grinning manically. The audience cheered wildly, the sounds of screaming and clapping echoing all over Jump City, probably.

Smoke waved at the audience through the windshield, and pulled off into the garage again.

"_Aaaaall righty then_!" The announcer laughed via loudspeaker. "It seems our amateurs are packing some talent! Perhaps they should consider a professional career; this is one of the best rallies I've seen in all my years! … Let's see what the judges have to say, shall we?"

Blackfire watched a large video screen above the pressbox with interest. Apparently, they were judging the drivers from 1-10 in each event…

The pros were judged first… most of them scored between seven and 9, but there were a couple tens. Then, _'THE STINGER'_ appeared on the screen… along with the number 9. Apparently, Gizmo and Mammoth did quite well. Their name faded out, and _'THE JUNKYARD UNDERTAKER'_ came up… also with the number nine. Johnny Rancid must've made quite an impression on the audience as well. Next…

'_DESPERADO'_… 10.

Blackfire cheered ecstatically. Smoke had gotten a perfect score! Before she could stop herself, she flew up out of her seat with glowing eyes, and burst out:

"**YEAH! GO SMOKE! IN YOUR FACES, YOU LOUSY KLORBAG VARBLERNELKS! WOOOOH!"**

As quickly as she'd shot up out of her seat, she looked around and realized people were staring. Her face very quickly turned a deep shade of red, and she floated sheepishly down to her seat. Apologizing meekly for her outburst, she sunk down and wished she could just dissapear into her seat.

But then again… Smoke's destructive monster truck antics were really beginning to stir up a bit of her old 'bad girl' personality… and she kind of liked it.

"For our next event… Rumble Rally Racing!" The loudspeakers announced.

All the trucks lined up at one side of the stadium… each one had a long lane that went to the other side of the stadium in a straight line. Apparently, the idea was the see which one could cross the distance to the other side the quickest. The announcer counted down from three… and on 'Go', all Hell broke loose. There was nothing but an ear-splitting rumble as the trucks took off…

Smoke finished first. Gizmo and Mammoth tied with Johnny Rancid for second; they all crossed at the same time. All the rest followed those four.

This pattern was repeated for the next several events… no matter what place anybody else finished in, no matter what gadgets Gizmo and Mammoth had up their sleeve, no matter what crazy moves Johnny Rancid pulled off… Smoke always managed to beat them without much effort.

A couple hours later… Smoke stood on a large platform, waving to the crowd. Gizmo and Mammoth stood on a nearby platform, wich wasn't quite as tall as Smoke's, and Johnny Rancid stood on a third that was lower than the other two.

"Ladies and gentlemen… Now _THIS_ is unexpected! Our pros have apparently been shown up by amateurs! In third place tonight… Junkyard Undertaker!" People applauded loudly. "In second place… The Stinger!" The audience clapped even louder. "And… our grand champion this year… in first place… **Desperado**!" The crowd **_really_** went wild.

_**Several Minutes Later In The Drivers' Lobby…**_

Despite their automotive rivalry, Smoke had actually managed to befriend his fellow contestants easily… oblivious to the fact that all three had been an enemy of his friends more than once.

Johnny Rancid, after having gotten over his sullen resentment at getting third place, had challenged Smoke to an arm wrestling match… which Smoke won easily. Afterwards, Smoke and Mammoth had held a chili-dog-eating contest… which Smoke ALSO won easily. For several minutes after this, Smoke and Gizmo discussed mechanics, while Mammoth and Rancid were throwing straw wrappers at each other…

The three victors' celebrations were short-lived however…

Smoke's acute hearing suddenly began picking up… screaming? From the outside stadium area… and gunshots, too. What the Hell was going on?

"Guys…. Shhh!" He motioned for his new friends to keep quiet.

"Wha…? What's wrong wit' you?" Johnny demanded.

"Listen…"

Mammoth, Gizmo, and Rancid all listened for a minute…. And they too, could vaguely make out these strange sounds…

"What the--? Is somebody getting shot at?" Gizmo asked nervously.

"I dunno…" Mammoth grumbled.

Smoke, for reasons he wasn't sure of… was getting very nervous. He couldn't help but have a very bad feeling about this… and what if Blackfire was getting hurt out there.

"Guys… stay here… I'm gonna go take a look…" Smoke said slowly. Rancid started to protest, but shut his mouth. Even in the short time he'd known him, he'd already learned it was pointless to argue with Smoke.

As the others readied themselves for possible conflict… Gizmo pressed a few buttons on his control unit and caused several missile-cannoned tentacles to appear from his hi-tech backpack, Mammoth flexed his massive muscles and cracked his knuckles, and Johnny reached into the glove compartment in his truck and pulled out a pair of scoped laser blasters… Smoke slowly and carefully made his way down the huge, dark corridor of the garage towards the stadium…

When he peeked out into the stadium grounds, and up into the stands… he gasped in angry shock. Every person in the crowd had been rounded up and pushed into one small portion of the stadium, and were being guarded by a large number of figures in silvery-plated body armor, and wielding large, bizzare looking guns.

"…Blackfire…!" He realized out loud. She was in there somewhere!

Muttering angrily and drawing his revolvers… he started to dash out and attack. Until, anyway… he realized that these strange, armed figures had him outnumbered 10 to 1…

Then, he had an idea. He dashed back to the others…

"Guys! Come here, quick!"

Mammoth looked at him in concern. "Huh? What's the big deal?"

"I… I ain't sure…. Somebody's here… they've taken the whole crowd hostage, and… they're armed."

Johnny Rancid spit out the tall glass of soda he'd been chugging. "…**_WHAT_**? Somebody had the balls to crash **_OUR_** party?"

"Yeah!" Squeaked Gizmo. "And they haven't announced the winner yet, either! It can't be over."

"I know." Smoke said nodding. "So here's the plan…"

The four guys, one huge, one tiny, two regular sized… huddled around like a football team…

Meanwhile… A huge metallic monster, with a fluid filled tank for a face, stalked in the press box, it's head nearly scraping the ceiling it was so tall. It's brain pulsed vexedly, and it spoke in a static-filled mechanical voice.

"Damn… Where is it? Where is the prototype?"

One of the figures walked up and spoke in a growling, inhuman voice… "_He hassss not appeared, Massssster…. He issss in hiding…_" It hissed. Clearly, whatever was behind that silver helmet… was not human.

"**_FIND HIM_**! And bring him to me… **alive**."

The man… or was it a man?… marched out quickly hoisting it's large cannon in a pair of bulky arms…

Out on the field where the events had been held… a lone truck suddenly rolled out… it was Desperado.

Immediately, several of the figures roared and gathered at the edges of the front row, holding their cannon-like guns up…

"Ssssstep out! With your handssss up!" One snarled loudly, firing a couple warning shots of blue plasma bolts into the air.

Nothing happened.

As they prepared to open fire… the roof of the truck slid open… and a thirteen foot long, double barelled shotgun emerged. A moment later, an overall clad figure climbed out of the sunroof and took the trigger…

**_KAABLOOM!_**

The thugs had just enough time to see a billowing trail of smoke and steam approaching them at high speed, right before seven of them were splattered into green goo on the wall… the wall itself also had a pair of large, smoking holes in it.

The massive gun fired off several more times in quick succession, with each shot creating a gigantic flare like a high power cannon, and finishing off the attackers and spelling out the words, "SMOKE WUZ HEER", in gunshot holes in the wall…

On the other side of the stadium, the crowd began to cheer loudly, until the armored things pointed plasma cannons at them, causing them to cower in silence again… except for one alien who was still grumbing her anger about the situation.

"Jerks… I ought to light them up like Chinese fireworks…" Blackfire muttered under her breath. But, she was afraid of there being so many… there was no way she could take them all.

Smoke laughed and pulled out his sniper. "So… do you give up, or do I have to spank you some more?" He demanded to the attackers. However, his smile faded when he heard the loudspeakers come to life… and he recognized the voice instantly.

"So… It's '**Smoke'** now, is it? Have you managed to conceal your abnormalities so well that they actually named you? Or have you not told them… _prototype_?" Drawled a mechanical, yet frighteningly farmiliar voice.

Smoke staggered back on the roof of his truck, his eyes looking fearful for the first time in a long time…

"No… Wagner?" He managed to choke out, terror filling his voice. "You… **YOU'RE** **DEAD**!" He screamed angrily.

"_Hmph_. You're intelligence has not improved, I see. Firstly, I am not dead… I'm not alive. I'm **_better_** than alive… I am whole! I am not Wagner, either. That name died with my inferior, organic body. I am now… a **_wholly_** **_different_** **_man_**… no, **_god_**. I… am… **Myntull**."

Screaming in rage and disbelief, Smoke raised his rifle, and aimed quickly, firing off a salvo of explosive slugs…

A ring of explosions rained around the top edges of the stadium as Smoke's shots took out each and every loudspeaker, lighting up the night like ominous fireworks. He fired, and fired, and fired again, desperatlely trying to drown out the voice he never wanted to hear again.

Finally, he lowered his sniper with shaking hands and panted. The still subdued crowd watched him in shocked silence. Blackfire was especially horrified by his reaction… and of the way he'd used the name 'Wagner'… wasn't that the scientist who…?

For a minute there was silence, Smoke collapsed onto the roof of his truck again, panting and shaking… trying to convince himself this was all some beastly nightmare… that he was still asleep in the driver's lobby, awaiting the next event.

Suddenly, the glass on the pressbox windows shattered and… something flew out. It did several spins and barell rolls in midair and glided down to Smoke, giving him a clear view of his new enemy.

Smoke stared in horror at the mechanized abomination before him. A buzzsaw bladed arm, along with a huge gatling gun mounted to the other… a laser weapon portruding from the face area… winged jetpack… hooked tail… shoulder mounted missile cannons… and a gurgling brain in oozing liquid.

"What… What the…the Hell are… you?" Smoke stammered.

The thing landed on the roof in front of him, it's metal wings folding to it's back and it's buzzsaw whirring threatiningly.

"I… Am… Your… Worst… **_Nightmare_**."

Without warning, the tail lashed out and grabbed him in an iron grip; he was unable to get his guns again…

As he struggled in Myntull's grip, Smoke grunted various curses, the anger and fear in his voice becoming more and more pronounced.

"Did you really think that I would ever let you go? Did you think you could get away from me?" Myntull demanded, the brain glowing slightly. "If you did, I have bad news I'm afraid… It simply isn't so. You will _never_… get away from **me**."

"**_LEAVE HIM ALONE_**!"

Both Myntull and Smoke turned startled faces… well, Smoke anyway; Myntull had no face to speak of… towards the hostage crowd.

The armored guards were holding down a struggling girl with dark hair and a purple skirt and top. "**_I SWEAR TO X'HAL, IF YOU HURT HIM I'LL KILL YOU_**!" She shrieked, eyes glowing violet.

"Huh… Blackfire?" Smoke whispered hoarsely.

"Hmm… A girl?" The robotic madman asked interestedly. "A girl, interested in you? Perhaps she wants to keep you as a pet?" He asked this last part loud enough to echo up to the crowd so that Blackfire could hear. "However… dangerous pets like you, must be put down, I'm afraid."

With that, Myntull pinned Smoke to the roof with his tail, and his buzzsaw whirred to life. He slowly moved it closer and closer to the struggling Smoke.

"Hmm, Yes… Time for one last dissection…"

At that moment, a screech of rage was heard from the stands… followed by a flash of violet light that sent the guards flying off in different directions. A moment later, a black and violet blur sped down towards Myntull and tackled him off the roof.

Blackfire floated back up a moment later and kneeled over Smoke.

"Smoke! Oh, X'hal, are you…. Are you all right?" She asked softly.

"I… I'm fine… but… this can't be real… he can't be… alive." He murmured as Blackfire helped him up.

"Here… take my hands." She said.

He looked at her confusedly, but did as she said. Suddenly, she took off into the air, carrying him with her up to the stands. Once there, she gently sat him down and he yanked out his shotgun. He eyed the guards levelly.

He stared at them for a moment as they aimed their plasma guns. Finally, he spoke…

"Go ahead… Make my day."

With sounds of crackling plasma, the air was lit up as they shot rapidly at him all at once. Reflexively, Smoke yanked up his chainsaw, and flipped the swich. The blade popped out instantly, and the plasma shots ricocheted harmlessly off of it.

He aimed his shotgun, and started pumping shells. The needles flew as he pulled the trigger, splattering the armed guards into green goo again. More of them, however, came pouring out of the stadium entrances… an army of them…

"Halt!" Mytnull roared, just recovering from Blackfire's attack.

The whole huge group stopped dead in their tracks.

"I suppose I should introduce my new projects…" Myntull hissed. "Remove your helmets!" He bellowed at the guards. They did so, and everyone gasped, a few people screamed.

The guards were NOT human… they had green skin, pointed and pierced ears, beady black eyes and greasy gray hair. Long yellowed tusks jutted up from their portruding lower jaws, and long forked tongues flickered in and out of their fanged mouths. Green slime dripped from their mouths like drool, and their faces were covered by strange designs and tattoos…

"Allow me to introduce…" Bellowed Myntull. "The 'Oppressed Ravenous Created Soldiers'… or, O.R.C.S." The evil brain explained. "They are perfect in every way… just as You were intended to be, Smoke. But… the one flaw you so flamboyantly demonstrated has been corrected in them… free will. They have none… only bloodlust and loyalty."

"Really?" Smoke snorted, cocking his shotgun. "Good… because that means they won't run away when I start kicking their ass, now will it?"

With an angry roar, Myntull bellowed the word, "ATTACK!"

The Orcs snarled and ran up, opening fire upon Smoke.

Smoke jumped up into the air, and came down with his chainsaw, slicing one into two bloody halves with a splat. He ducked another's claws, and came up with the butt of his shotgun to stun the bugger. It stood dumbly for a second, before Smoke blew it's head off, the body sliding to the ground as green slime spurted up.

"HYAH!" Smoke cried, dodging shots and blasting away with his shotgun. Each close range shot in the crowd of Orcs instantly caused his targets to burst into pieces as a cloud of needles tore them apart. It seemed that Smoke's new flechette shells were good for something after all!

"Hah! I **KNOW** you guy aren't trying!" The gunner taunted a nearby orc. "Or am I just that good?"

Another Orc came shot at him, but Smoke ducked onto his knees and lashed out with his chainsaw, cutting the thing's legs off with a shrill whir. The thing shrieked and looked around, propped up on knee-stumps… right before Smoke walked up and blasted it's ugly noggin off it's shoulders with a point-blank shotgun blast, causing the maimed critter to fall back dead.

He sliced a few nearby Orcs, sending green limbs flying like kites. He stood and surveyed his work, when another one came up behind him… but he abruptly pointed his shotgun over his shoulder and blasted him in the chest without even turning around.

Another platton came running in, letting fly with plasma. Smoke yelled and cranked his saw into overdrive. Running straight at them, he deflected every shot with his chainsaw blade… until he was finally right at them, at which point he let loose a single, mighty swing that chopped them in half.

By this time, Blackfire was realizing she should be helping, so she added to his attack with some energy blasts of her own.

There was a lapse in combat, and Smoke observed the piles of dead Orcs all around…

"Okay…" he said after a minute. He ran up to the railing over the stadium's field and yelled. "GUYS! NOW!"

Afterwards, Gizmo and Mammoth's Stinger, and Johnny Rancid's Junkyard Undertaker hauled out of the garage. Smoke turned to the crowd and pointed to a flight of stairs.

"Go, now! Get out of here!"

The crowed filed down and got into the trucks with Gizmo, Mammoth, and Rancid. A large group of people got into the back of the Stinger, and another huge group got into the trailer of Rancid's eighteen wheeler. Those that were left immediately began evacuating by foot.

Smoke watched Myntull hovering calmly in midair. He didn't know why he wasn't trying to stop them, but… he didn't care.

"Smoke…" Blackfire floated over to him. "I'm staying! I'm going to help you fight hi-"

"Go." Smoke whispered.

She looked startled. "… W-what?"

"Please… go. It's not safe. And besides, this is between him and me."

She argued, but he insisted, and finally she gave in. "Okay.. but… before I leave… let me do one thing." She asked.

He looked at her strangely. ".,..What?"

She leaned over… and kissed him on the cheek. "That." Then, she turned and flew off towards the city.

He watched her go, as well as the last of the hostages, and turned to Myntull.

"So… just you and me, Doc."

"Yes… it is time."

Instantly, Myntull brought up his chaingun and blasted outwards with a spray of bullets. Smoke blocked with his chainsaw blade, and returned fire with his shotgun. However, Myntull flew away…

"Take this!" The robo villain roared.

He let loose a flurry of miniature sidewinder missiles from his shoudler cannons, which homed in on Smoke and sent him flying with an explosion. He got up groaning and returned fire with his Sniper.

This time, his shot's hit home and Myntull was knocked out of the air by the explosive shots. He landed with a metallic thump, and smoked.

Taking advantage, Smoke cranked up his chainsaw and charged, intending to finish off the downed bot once and for all… but at the last moment, Myntull's buzzsaw reached up and their blades clashed.

The two whirring saw blades screeched against each other with a horrid noise, and sent a cloud of multi-colored sparks everywhere, burning Smoke's face and singing Myntull's metallic armor. They put off as much strength as they could, trying to force the blades back at each other…

Smoke would've reached for his shotgun, but… if he took a hand off the saw, he was afraid he'd be overpowered…

With a grunt, Smoke finally swerved the blades back onto Myntull, slashing him and cutting away a small portion of his metal covering. Exposed wires sparked and sizzled.

Angrily, the robot fired off a laser from it's head, hitting Smoke dead in the shoulder.

Smoke screamed in pain as his shoulder was charred by the laser. He fell to his knees grasping it.

Myntull lunged forward with metal wings outstretched…

At the last moment, Smoke ducked and cocked his shotgun. As Myntull flew over him, he whipped quickly around and let of a powerful burst that sent the madman crashing down into the ground.

While he was down, Smoke made a dash for his truck…

When Myntull finally pulled his mechanized body up, he was greeted by the sight of a monster truck coming at him and 114Mph…

Smoke ran him over… and once over, he popped it into reverse and ran over him again… and again… and again….

Then, he climbed out of the sunroof and gripped his giant punt shotgun. Aiming at his roadkill enemy, he popped off a couple of massive shots that blew away large chunks of Myntull's body…

The sparking, malfunctioning baddy heaved himself to his feet, and wavered there…

Suddenly, it's wings extended and it's jets fired up. Myntull launched himself into the air and flew at high speed to the city.

"**Mark my words**… **_I WILL RETURN_**!" He bellowed in wicked rage… and then, fast as a comet, he was gone.

Smoke collapsed back down into the driver's seat… and cranked up Desperado. Then, he sighed heavily and began his long drive back to Titan's Tower…

_**At The Northernmost Part Of The World…**_

Sub-Zero was excitedly gathering Jinx's bags… they were here! He hadn't been outside yet, but Jinx was out there now. He wanted to get up as soon as possible, but he had to get her stuff first.

As he was carrying up the baggage, he was stopped by Jinx stumbling below deck.

He dropped the stuff and walked over. He was startled to see that she'd been crying. And she had a confused, afraid look in her eyes.

"W…What's…wrong?" He asked urgently.

She sobbed and was unable to answer. She pointed up to the deck, where she'd just come from… her hand was trembling.

Puzzled, the knight climbed up and stood on deck… he took a look at his home.

And almost screamed.

He should've seen a sprawling white coastline, with snow and ice everywhere and frozen water offshore… Instead, there was a desert of gray ashes… dotted with spires of black stone and small, dead bushes.

He should've seen a horizon covered with frosty fog and snow-capped mountains. Instead, he saw a horizon of active volcanoes with trails of glowing magma, and clouds of smoke and brimstone…

He shouldv'e seen his home. He saw a barren wasteland of fire and death.

**_Okay, I'll admit: that was one of the worst cliffhangers ever. But I'm tired... it's now 11:12 P.M upon my completion of this and I need some sleep so... I think I'll stop here._**

**_Anyway, Review!... Please..._**

_**--The Mad Phantom...**_


	15. Chapter Fourteen

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans._

_**Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Fourteen**_

"I… I don't understand…" Sub-Zero stammered softly. He was in the cabin of his ship, looking intently at his map of the world, and holding a compass in his hands. "This is… this **has** to be it; we're here! But… it's… not the same." He couldn't seem to find the right words.

Jinx was sitting on a chair nearby, and looking out the window at the volcanic desert island in front of them. "It… it's so _hot_ out there… we can't possibly in the right place…" Jinx knew, simply from having stepped outside for a moment, that it was at least 95 degrees Fahrenheit or so…

She stared in disbelief at the expanse of dull-gray ash desert before them. Craggy, volcanic mountains let off clouds of smoke, steam, brimstone, and heat… and black rocks pointed upwards from the ground at strange angles. The one, single mountain that she'd seen last time that dominated the island… the one that the castle was located on the slopes of… was no longer the huge frozen peak that it once was. Instead, a huge volcano lay in the center of the island…

It was as if the entire island had undergone some bizarre temporal reversal. Here, there was nothing any longer except fiery deserts and hazy mountains.

Sub-Zero walked over to Jinx, and showed her the compass. The pointer within it was behaving… oddly. Instead of pointing North, it would stay in one direction for a second, then spin erratically around in circles before settling on a different direction, then spinning again…

"Why is it doing that? Is it broken?" She asked.

He shook his head gravely. "No… It works just fine. It always does this when I get home." He looked at her solemnly. "Compasses point North, like you said. But at home… my home **_IS_** North. You can't **get** any more North. So, it gets confused and spins."

He sighed heavily. "This is the right place… but… it's gone. Everything's changed so…" Suddenly his head snapped up. "I'm going out there! I'm going to the city and find out what happened!"

He started to walk right out the door, but Jinx stopped him. "… Then I'm coming with you."

He blinked and shook his head. "No. Jinx, I… I'm sorry, but I cant let you. It might be dangerous out there!" He insisted worriedly.

"And what if you pass out from the heat? Or get attacked by wild animals?" She challenged.

He thought about this. Animals, he could handle, but…. This unfamiliar heat… he wasn't sure how well he'd do… and besides, she had every right to go if she wanted.

"Jinx… You're right." He whispered. "I'm… sorry I treated you like you were helpless, like that… I just… don't want you to get hurt."

She walked up and put a pale hand to his cheek. "And I don't want you to, either. That's why I'm coming with you."

Smiling, Sub-Zero leaned over and kissed her gently, reminded of why he loved her so much. It wasn't her beauty, though that didn't hurt, nor was it her magical prowess… it was that strong will of hers, and the confidence to get things done

"…Thanks, Jinx."

The sorceress looked out the window, and sighed nervously. "Well… If we're going to go… I guess the sooner the better."

The smile vanished from Zero's face, and he winced a bit. "Yeah… you're right."

_**Later On…**_

Zero sat panting on a rock, fanning himself furiously. Jinx handed him a thermos of water she'd gotten from her bags before they'd left.

"Th-thanks…" He said hoarsely. "I'm really glad you thought to bring that… you always were the smarter one out of the two of us." He joked, causing her to blush slightly.

As he gulped the refreshingly cold water down, Jinx watched him in concern. She was genuinely worried about him… the entire way here, Zero had been blasting cold air on himself using his powers, but he was still sweating terribly… he had, of course, tried to keep Jinx cool too, but she'd insisted he needed it more.

"God, I hope we get there soon…" Zero murmured, wiping the sweat off his forehead. "I want to find out what the Hell happened here… This isn't right…"

Jinx sat down by him and looked pensively out across the ashes. "Are you sure you can still find your way there…? Now that it's different, I mean."

"I could find it anytime, anywhere." Zero said reassuringly. "But I hope to God… that there's still something there to find."

Shortly after he'd said this, he put his head down into his hands and groaned loudly. "_Oh God_… How could I let this **happen**?" He demanded, slamming his gloved fist down on the boulder hard enough to cause it to shake, startling Jinx. "I should've been here! I could've protected them, stopped all this! I would've—" Zero froze, no pun intended, as he realized what he'd just said.

He looked over and saw Jinx looking as if she was about to tear up. Her pink cat eyes were misting over, threatening to burst into tears, and her bottom lip quivered slightly. Her hand was clenched tightly on the edges of her black skirt, and it shook violently.

He had said, and I quote, '_I should have been there_.' If he had been '_here'_, he couldn't have been '_there'_… with Jinx.

"Jinx, I… I didn't mean it like that!" He apologized immediately. He put his arms around her. "I just… I meant…!" He was tongue-tied, and quite flustered.

"I know, Zero…" She whispered, hugging him back and sniffing a bit. "I know." She didn't say it, but it kind of… hurt her. Not what he'd said! She knew that he didn't mean that he didn't want to be with her… what hurt her was that she knew it was true… if she hadn't had him all to herself, he could have saved everyone, stopped any of this from happening… although, they still had no idea what had happened.

"We… should get going, I think. It's not much farther." Zero said softly, still looking pensive and worried. His gaze drifted back to Jinx. "Unless you need to rest, I mean! We can still—"

"No…" Jinx said softly. "You're right. We should hurry."

They got up and began walking again. Zero led the way; Jinx followed him. They continued like this another hour or so, until…

Zero stopped abruptly.

"Huh...? What is it?" Jinx asked.

"The… The woods… There should be a forest here, but…" He pointed a shaky finger up ahead. She looked over his shoulder and gasped.

She saw a forest, but… not the same forest of gnarled leafless trees that she'd seen last time.

A forest of rocks. Sharp, Jagged, black rocks the size of large tress jutted up from the ground. They formed a sort of forest in and of themselves, but…

"… Zero? What should we do?" Jinx asked.

"Jinx, I… I think we should keep going." He had a determined look in his crimson eyes as he strode forward. "We're getting close… I can feel it."

He suddenly grabbed Jinx up into his arms, and broke into a run, being careful not to jostle her around, but also appearing to be in a great rush.

"What the—Zero, what are you doing?" Jinx yelped, badly startled. "I can still walk, y'know!"

"I'm sorry… but I have to know! I can't stand not knowing any more!" Was all Zero said in response.

Sub-Zero dashed through the sea of large stone spires, turning corners sharply and appearing to know exactly where he was going, even though everything around them looked exactly the same. Once or twice, it looked like Zero was going to run into a rock, but he always turned at the last moment.

Finally, they rushed out into a clearing, the bright, beating sunlight causing Zero to shield his eyes.

There, in front of them, were the city walls. The last time Jinx had come here, they'd been transparent and made out of ice, allowing whoever stood outside a blurred view of what was going on in the city.

Now though, they were… stone. The same black, volcanic rock that they'd been seeing so much of. Zero motioned for Jinx to follow, and started quickly towards it.

They made their way to a section of the wall with windows and a silver doorway, and it looked as though a small cabin had been built into the wall. Next to that, was a pair of huge, metal gates leading into the city. Sub-Zero strode up and knocked forcefully on the door with his fist.

"Flake-Bane is the gatekeeper… we've known each other all my life. If anyone can tell us what happened, he can." Zero explained, turning to Jinx.

A moment of silence followed these words… and then, the door swung slowly open with a metallic creak.

There stood a short young man with white hair cut short into a monk-do, complete with the bald patch in the middle. He wore teal robes and had a large ice-bladed war-axe sticking out of his silver belt. He stared with closed eyes at the floor, cowering and looking as though he were about to pass out.

"…Er…Um… G-greetings, M-m'lord. I... is there something y-you need…?" His high-pitched voice cracked a bit as though he were talking to someone who was about to murder him.

"…Flake-Bane? For God's sakes, it's me! You haven't forgotten me already, have you?" Zero demanded irritably.

The guy flinched and gasped sharply. He stared at Zero with wide, watery reddish eyes and looked like he'd seen a ghost. He stumbled back, and choked out:

"I… _No_… _can't be_… heat, making me _see_ things…" he muttered to himself, shivering and rubbing his eyes.

Sighing, Zero whacked him on the head.

"Argh! L-lord Sub-Zero! It **_IS_** you! You're back!" He squeaked.

"Flake-Bane, what…" Zero tried to ask, but found himself lost for words. "How… what did… What the bloody Hell happened here?"

"Quickly! Come inside! They mustn't see you!" As though he were waking out of a trance, Bane flinched and grabbed Sub-Zero, yanking him into the cabin in the wall, and slamming the door shut… leaving Jinx standing there feeling extremely awkward.

Then, the door opened back up and she was yanked in with a yelp, just before it slammed shut again.

Once in, Flake-Bane led them over to a room with several blue-flamed candles were burning, giving the room a cool glow. He motioned for Zero to sit down on a white sofa, and Jinx sat down next to him. He left the room and came back a moment later with a couple bottles of iced rum, which Zero looked at as though it were the best thing he'd seen in years.

Zero snatched the bottle and downed a large swig, not even pausing to breath.

Bane grinned at his friend's reaction and sat down in a nearby chair with the other bottle. Popping off the cap, he took a long gulp and leaned back.

While they were enjoying the drink, Jinx took the opportunity to get a better look at their surroundings, her feline eyes darting alertly around the small room.

A large stone fireplace stood in one corner, probably kept lit normally… but with things suddenly changed like this, it now sat unused and forgotten. A wooden bookshelf filled with books and trinkets stood next to that, and a bed was over in the far corner of the room.

"So… you were going to tell me what happened?" Sub-Zero asked quickly after a moment.

Putting down his bottle, Flake-Bane nodded and swallowed a mouthful of rum. Looking nervously around as though he suspected someone was watching, he leaned over and began his tale in a soft, hoarse voice.

"Well… It started about… Oh, I dunno… about three weeks after you left. We were just… conducting business as usual; nothing was out of the ordinary, but… all of the sudden, a few kids out hunting for deer noticed ships coming towards us from the south…"

"Ships?" Zero interrupted. "… What kind of ships?"

Bane's eyes seemed to widen nervously, and he gulped slightly before continuing. "…Black ships, m'lord. Black ships."

Sub-Zero sat back in his seat, beginning to look extremely nervous. "I was afraid you were going to say that…"

"Huh? What is it about black ships?" Jinx asked.

"Well… It's just an old saying around these parts." Zero explained. "Beware black ships o'er the sea, or to you, woe will be…"

"Yes… They are bad luck…" Bane said solemnly. "Then again, I've never been one to believe much in bad luck."

"Hmph… I've never heard that… and I should know." Jinx huffed. She was an expert at causing bad luck, after all.

"Well… it's just always been taken as an Norblitzian old wife's tale that black ships on the horizon meant a black fate looming forward…" Zero said.

"Aye… and this time, I'm afraid it came true." Bane said remorsefully. "Because then… **_He_** got off of them."

"_'He'_… Who is _'He'_…?" Zero asked slowly.

"Him! The one whom did this!" Flake-Bane's watery eyes seemed to widen more than previously, and he whispered the next three words as though they were dangerous information. "…Lord Von Hellwing…!"

"Hellwing? Someone named Hellwing did this?" Zero demanded. "I'll kill him! Where is—"

"No! You cannot fight him alone! He's already defeated our entire brigade of knights single-handedly!"

"So… he's a warrior, huh?"

"No… a wizard. A foul wizard… he can raise the dead, call forth the fires of Hell from the palms of his hands!" Bane stated. "He control's all fire and brimstone as if he himself created it… and his black magic is far more terrible than any sword."

"Hey, wait…. You're telling me…" Zero's crimson eyes flashed angrily. "That one… puny… Wizard… did **ALL THIS**?" He demanded.

"Yes! I know it is hard to believe, but I swear it's true! He claims he comes from an island empire in the equator… a desert island full of volcanoes and lava pits… he called it, _Orcusbolt_."

"Orcusbolt… an island of fire?" Zero asked.

"Yes! Much like our own, but… just the opposite. He came here and told us we had imposed our wicked chill on the world long enough… he said he would turn our kingdom into a copy of his Orcusbolt, and rule it as an extension of his own empire."

Jinx listened with fascination at these words. A wizard who was powerful enough to do all this… she, as someone who knew quite a bit about magic, knew that anyone who was capable of transforming an entire island in the blink of an eye… had to be extremely dangerous.

"We have to stop him! We have to—"

Flake-Bane cut him off mid-sentence with a solemn shake of his head. "No… Don't you see, Sub-Zero? It's too late. He's already won. There's nothing to be done…"

Sub-Zero's crimson eyes flashed with a pale-blue light and a sudden gale of frigid air whipped around him, blowing over a couple chairs and putting out several of the candles.

"He may have won the fight." Zero stated loudly. "But he hasn't won the damn war! Now, I don't care if you'd rather hold up in here and wait for the storm to pass over… but I'm going to fight. I'm going to fight until either him or me is dead…. And it won't be me."

At the word '_dead'_, Jinx flinched noticeably. She looked at him with watery eyes. She didn't want him to get hurt… much less die. "Zero… let me help you." She started. "You _know_ I can fight."

"You… want to fight him?" He asked softly.

"Sub-Zero, I love you. And I am **_not_** going to let you go off and fight some kind of evil wizard without me!" She said, pink eyes flashing boldly, yet appearing misty and teary at the same time.

He looked at her intently for a moment, blood-hued eyes seeming to penetrate into her soul. Then, he stepped over and embraced her in a hug. After a moment of surprised silence, he looked up and spoke to her softly.

"Jinx… I would be glad to take you with me… God knows I need all the help I can get."

"And you've **got** it."

Both of them looked around to see Flake-Bane standing there with his icy hatchet drawn and packing a few books and tools into a bag, which he then tied around his neck and allowed to hang over his back like a backpack. He looked at Zero determinedly, all traces of his former cowardice gone.

"Zero… you've been a friend to me my whole life… And I'll be damned if I don't help you out on this!" he declared swinging his axe through the air.

Sub-Zero was at a loss for words…. But both Jinx and Bane got the message loud and clear from the grateful smile spreading across his face.

Flake-Bane ran over into another room, and started pulling wooden levers that stuck out of the wall. Immediately, a loudly screeching, metallic, grating noise began to echo all throughout the small cabin.

"Okay…" Bane turned to his friends. "The city gates are open. We should be able to get through, but… be warned. Black Riders are all over the place…"

"Wait… Black Riders?" Zero asked, drawing his sword. "Who are Black Riders?"

"Lord Von Hellwing's elite cavalry guard. They mount on black horses, with manes and tails that burn with fire… they wield lances made from hardened lava, and wear the blackest armor you've ever seen." Zero's friend explained.

Zero spun his sword around in one hand and glared at the doorway. "Well then… I say it's time we show 'em what happens when you mess with the best."

_**Several Minutes Later…**_

"Everything's… the same, here… the buildings, I mean." Sub-Zero commented as they walked down the main street of the city.

Small, medieval style stone cabins with wood-and-straw roofs lined the streets, and some larger ones had signs bearing monikers such as, '_Le Gebarsten Isbre'_, which was an Inn/Tavern… Sub-Zero translated the name for Jinx as, "The Cracked Glacier". Another one said, '_Hellig Helgedom_'… or 'Holy Sanctum'. Apparently, It was a church, because it had a large silver cross decorating the entrance. Several small stores and shops were scattered to and fro.

The main street itself was paved in silver, and led all the way up to the mountain where the castle was built onto the slopes. The castle, unlike the other buildings, had changed drastically.

No longer was it made from ice, but… black stone. Glowing red cracks spread across the outside of it, as though it were volcanic, and the moat, once filled with frozen water, was now running with molten lava, causing clouds of smoke to drift everywhere and filling the city with the smell of fire and brimstone. The castle towers were now craggy spires that opened up into steaming and glowing openings, like the tops of volcanoes.

"When Von Hellwing took over…" Bane explained to the stunned Zero. "He changed the castle, just like the island, to suit his own tastes."

The streets were eerily deserted… it was as if they were walking through a Dark Ages ghost town.

"Where are all the people?" Jinx asked. "Shouldn't they be out and about?"

"When Lord Hellwing took over… he imposed a law saying, one may only come out of their homes if they have a just reason… such as going out to buy food or somesuch… Other than that, the people are under a mass house-arrest." Flake-Bane supplied again.

In the middle of the conversation, they were stopped in the middle of the street by a black-armored figure riding a fiery-mane black steed. In his hands, he held a large lance made of volcanic rock, and a matching shield made of the same. The glowing red cracks on the shield crossed in such a way that they created the emblem of a fireball…

"Is this one of the 'Black Riders', you told me about?" Zero asked.

Flake-Bane nodded. "Yes… this is one of them…"

Sub-Zero stepped up. "You there! Take me to the castle!"

The black-clad rider kept a tight hold on his stone lance, and was silent.

"I'm warning you…" Zero hissed. "You've pissed me off enough already with your presence. Do… not… tempt me."

"I don't think he's going to talk…" Jinx said.

"They never do. They are silent…" Bane explained.

"Well, lets see how silent he is in battle!" Zero yelled.

With a charge, Sub-Zero leapt up with sword drawn. The rider was perfectly still, until Zero was almost upon him. Then, he reached up with his lance and blocked the sword. The horse whinnied and opened it's mouth… upon which point, a stream of fire jetted forth and sent Sub-Zero flying back.

"Uh… Did I forget to mention their steeds have breath of fire…?" Flake-Bane asked sheepishly.

Zero reached out and fired a blue ice beam from his hand that collided in midair with the horse's breath. They two forces, ice and fire, strained against each other attempting to drive each other back…

Finally, Zero gave a triumphant grunt and sent the ice beam through the flames all the way to the horse, which gave a startled yelp before being consumed by ice, turning it into a frozen sculpture.

The rider, however, leapt off before sharing his steed's fate…

"You've got no horse… now give up." Zero said evenly.

The rider stood there for a moment, right before charging with his lance held above his head as though he intended to skewer Sub-Zero with it. But, a well-timed ball of ice knocked the lance out of his hands and Zero leapt forward and sliced the rider's helmeted head off his shoulders with a quick flick of his icy blade.

The body stood there… and then took a swing at Zero with a fist.

"What the Hell? I cut his head off!" Zero exclaimed.

Fed up, Zero sliced the fist off at the wrist. The rider looked at his armored stump for a moment, then kicked Zero in the gut.

"You son of a—"

Abandoning the 'slice and dice' approach, Zero got out his warhammer and bashed the armored warrior to the ground, right before proceeding to pound him relentlessly with it.

After a minute of cracking and smashing noises, Jinx and Bane uncovered their eyes….

There stood Zero, panting and sweating over a busted up suit of armor… with large amounts of ash coming from the insides of the suit. In fact, there was no body to speak of… just ash.

"I… I don't understand… what WAS he?" Zero asked.

"A golem… had to have been." Jinx stated.

"A golem?"

"Made out of ash." She turned to Bane. "You said that this Hellwing was a wizard, right? He probably makes these guys out of ash and brings them to life."

"Well… I don't care if they're made out of steel, they aren't gonna stop us from getting into that castle…" Zero said, right before taking off towards the castle.

_**That's the end of this chapter. I know, I know, Smoke, The Titans, and Myntull weren't even in this one… but after spending so much time on them, I figured I might as well do a Zero-Jinx chapter.**_

_**Read and Review!**_

**_--The Mad Phantom…_**


	16. Chapter Fifteen

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans are not mine._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Fifteen**_

"I… I just can't believe it… he can't be back. He just… it's not possible!"

Smoke was on the couch in the living room, Blackfire and Robin in the room with him. All the others were asleep; it had been early morning when Smoke had pulled up into the Titan's Tower garage and stumbled his way up to the living room. Blackfire had been sitting up waiting for him, and Robin had been awake anyway making some adjustments to his Bo staff.

"Maybe… maybe he survived the blast in the first place." Robin said slowly.

"But then, why would he replace his body with a 15 foot tall robot?" Blackfire asked skeptically.

Robin sighed heavily and shrugged in defeat. "I… I don't know."

Blackfire turned her attention to the injured gunman on the couch. His shoulder was badly burnt and bleeding from Myntull's laser weapon. Robin had immediately bandaged it when Smoke got back. Of course, Smoke had some medical supplies in his pack, and probably could've done it himself, but… he'd honestly forgotten he'd been injured. He had been preoccupied with… other things.

"Does it still hurt…?" Blackfire asked after a minute, examining the bloodied bandage covering his shoulder.

"Well… Not really. When you've got a pain tolerance level like me, you don't really notice…" He said honestly. "Besides, don't worry… I heal fast."

"Still… it just makes me… er, **_us_**, worried." Blackfire corrected herself quickly. She knew though, she was probably more worried than Robin. She just didn't want Smoke to know that.

Smoke sat silently, staring at a nearby wall with a pensive expression. He was grappling several things in his mind at once. First of all, should he tell Robin and Blackfire that it had been him that'd bombed the military base in the first place…? Would Robin and the others shun him for it? And what about Blackfire? … She'd be disgusted with him… but then again, it would be the honest thing to do. And… if you can't tell the truth to your friends… then whom **CAN** you tell it to?

"… Uh… Robin… Blackfire… There's something… something I need to fess up about." He began in a soft shaky voice.

"I know, I know you entered the Monster Truck competition." Robin said dismissively. "Don't worry, nobody's mad about that."

"No! Not that…. I mean… something more… serious."

Blackfire looked at him oddly, a gleam of confusion in her eyes. "But… Smoke, what d'you mean?" Deep inside, though… Blackfire wasn't really sure she wanted to know.

"I… It…" Smoke took a deep breath to steady his voice. "… It was me, all right? I did it. It's my fault."

Robin cocked an eyebrow in confusion. "**What** was your fault? Smoke, you haven't done anything wrong…."

"You saved all those people! You stopped that… that _thing_, and killed off those monsters of his!" Blackfire insisted.

Smoke sighed and shifted uncomfortably, turning so that his back was to them. "There are things you don't know about me…" He said softly.

Before they could respond, he continued with his back still facing them as though he was afraid to meet their gaze. "I blew 'im up. I took out that base. It was me. It wasn't a gas leak, it wasn't a crate of faulty explosives, and it wasn't a malfunctioning electrical system… It was a pissed off genetic construct. **_Me_**."

"It's _my_ fault, **all** of it's my fault." He continued again, while Robin dropped the roll of bandages he was holding and Blackfire's eyes went wide as tires. "If I… If I hadn't of blown him up, I… he'd still be a human. He'd still be harmless. But **_no_**… They got his brain, and they made something else out of him. Something… _completely insane, and less than human_. And now, he's a threat to this whole city…. All because of me."

And before his stunned friends could react, he got up and left to his room in the garage, entirely silent all but for the clicking of his cowboy boots on the metallic tower floor.

_**An Hour Later…**_

"So… what's happened?" Terra asked nervously, sitting in one of many seats placed around a large table in the living room.

"It's… it's about Smoke." Robin explained. "I called everybody here because there's something important you guys should know about. Smoke…"

"Yeah! He got first place in the monster truck rally!" Cyborg blurted out. Everyone looked at him oddly. "Uh… I was watching it on T.V…." he explained.

"And he saved everybody from that… brain thingy." Beast Boy added.

"That 'brain-thingy', is actually what I needed to talk to you guys about…" Robin said seriously.

"What about it? It's a brain in a bot… It can't be that tough." Beast Boy scoffed.

"It's not that, but… it's the brain **IN** the bot that concerns me…" Robin pressed a small button on the underside of the table, and a screen lowered from the ceiling. A projector emerged from the table a moment later, and Robin switched off the lights as he started up the small projector.

The first thing to appear on the screen was a black-and-white photograph of a small, bald man with pince-nez glasses. He wore a lab coat and khaki dress pants with boots. A surgical mask was tied around his neck and his wrinkled skin indicated a great deal of age.

"This…" Robin explained. "… Is one, Professor Karl Stefan Wagner. Leading international expert scientist in robotics, weapons R&D, and genetics. He was hired by the U.S. Government in 1984 to lead the way on a top-secret military project… the project to create the ultimate soldier."

"… Smoke?" Starfire asked uncertainly.

"Exactly." Robin nodded. "Of course, he wasn't _'Smoke'_ to them… he wasn't even a person to them. By them, I mean the scientists working on the project… I've been doing some research and I've come up with some of the particulars of the experiments…" The Boy Wonder retrieved a small page of notes from his belt. "Let's see… Their main goal was to create a single, perfected super-soldier… and once they'd made sure it was the product they wanted, kill off the original and use his cells to clone an entire army of them… far superior to our existing troops."

"Some tests preformed on the prototype super-soldier included… Pain tolerance tests involving boiling wax, vibrating knives, breaking of knee-caps, and… industrial-strength jackhammers…"

Robin paused as everyone's eyes went twice as wide as they were 30 seconds ago.

"… As well as constant blood tests, in which they drew as much as1/4 a gallon at a time. This, though it would seriously weaken or kill a normal person, was only an annoyance to the subject, whose body rapidly heals wounds and regenerates lost bodily fluids such as blood…"

"Tha… that is… so heartless." Starfire whispered shaking her head.

"No wonder he got outta there as soon as he could." Cy said with a grimace.

Robin nodded solemnly and clicked a button on the side of the projector. The picture of Prof. Wagner changed to a large picture of smoking and flaming rubble with fire trucks and ambulances parked outside with fireman, medics, and policeman.

"As Beast Boy told the other day…" Robin began, "… The Jump City Military Base was recently bombed. The perpetrator was never discovered, but there were no survivors… however, both of those facts have now changed. The perpetrator WAS discovered, because he told Blackfire and me himself. And there WAS a survivor."

In response to his teammates confused looks, Robin sat back down and sighed heavily. "It was Smoke. He blew up the base."

The response was immediate.

"No! Smoke would have never…!" Star began, but her voice trailed off.

"Dude… you mean… he did all of that?" Beast Boy asked.

"He… killed all of them?" Terra asked, her voice barely a whisper.

There was a moment of shocked silence as everybody tried to digest everything they'd been told.

"…You can't possibly blame him!" Blackfire blurted out suddenly, causing everyone to jump slightly and turn to face her. "You can't look me in the eyes and say that you wouldn't have done the same thing he did! It's not his fault!"

"You're right." Robin agreed with a nod, trying to calm Blackfire down a little. "But still… He broke God-Only-Knows how many laws that night, and still… he kept a secret from us."

"So did Sub-Zero." Raven added.

Robin turned to face her in confusion. "… Huh? Zero? What's he got to do with this…?"

"Smoke told him he was going back. But he made Zero promise not to tell." Raven explained. Now, it was her turn to get some funny looks. "… I sensed some sort of worry and deception coming from Zero before he left so… I took the liberty of reading his mind… I probably shouldn't have, but… I was suspicious… and wrongly so."

"Wait… you… _knew_?" Robin asked dumbfounded. "And you didn't tell anybody?"

"No. I knew Smoke could handle himself, and… well, honestly… I agree with Blackfire. They deserved what they got." She mumbled.

Robin stared for a moment, but then just shrugged and sighed. "Well… anyway, I think somebody should go talk to him." Robin said after a minute of silence. "I still think he went overboard a bit, but… I agree. It wasn't his fault, and he had every right to do what he did, I guess."

Robin jerked his thumb to the staircase leading down to the garage. "Like I said, somebody needs to go talk to him… he seems a bit…" he paused, searching for the right words. "… Depressed."

While all this was going on, Smoke was in the garage, tossing his backpack, along with a few tools and several bags of chips and some candy bars, into the passenger seat on his truck, which now had normal sized tires again.

Pulling a black marker out of his pocket and a stack of post-it notes from the glove compartment in the truck… he scrawled out a quick note, and stuck it to the door of his room. Then, getting into the truck, he reached for his keys and was about to crank up the engine…

"Wait! Smoke, wait a minute!"

He froze stiff, and looked up through the windshield to see the garage door fly open and Blackfire bolt through. She flew over to the side of his truck and yanked the door open on his side.

"What are you doing?" She demanded. "Where are you going?"

Smoke sighed heavily and slumped back in his seat. He looked at her sadly. "It's better if I go…" He said. "I've caused way too much trouble for you guys already. And now, I have to go deal with what I've done."

"With what you've done…?" Blackfire repeated in confusion.

"Myntull. He's out there, somewhere. And he's not going to stop. He's going to hurt people, commit crimes, destroy buildings, whatever he has to do to get me to come fight him… because it's not the city or you guys that he's after… it's me."

"Then we'll help you! You can't fight him by yourself…" Blackfire insisted fiercely.

"Blackfire… They've already done so much for me…" He muttered uncertainly.

"That's because we're your friends. And a friend wouldn't let you face this by yourself…" her gaze softened and she put a hand on his shoulder, where the bandage had been. "… Smoke… why? Why do you torture yourself like this?"

Smoke shook his head and turned away from her. "I just can't get rid of the feeling that it's my fault. And besides, If I hadn't…"

"No. Don't even talk about that anymore. We've already agreed that none of this is your fault. Please… stop beating yourself up like this. And stay with us!"

He looked up from floorboard, hazel eyes wide and questioning. "So… nobody's pissed at me?"

She said nothing in response, but floated up a little and gave him a sudden hug around the neck… and kissed him on the cheek. "No… We're on your side." She said softly, resting her head on his shoulder.

What Blackfire didn't notice, was that Smoke's face had gone as red as an apple. He opened his mouth several times as if to say something, but only dry silence came out. Blackfire looked up at him in concern, loosening her hug somewhat…

"… Huh? Smoke… are you okay?" She asked in concern.

He grinned dumbly and nodded… right before slumping forward onto the steering wheel, passed out cold from shock and sheer giddiness.

_**Thirty Minutes Later…**_

A pair of gold-hazel eyes suddenly blinked open. It was Smoke, and he was just now waking up. He sat up groggily and realized he was in his room, on the sofa.

"Aw, dammit…" He muttered. "She didn't kiss me… It was just a dream." He slumped back down onto the couch.

"… Ahem." Somebody cleared their throat from behind him… he sat up again, looking around in confusion… he turned around…

All of his friends were standing outside the door to his room, staring bemusedly at him.

"Uh… I mean… Yeah, because I…" He searched desperately for some excuse. "… Did I say that out loud…?"

"Yes." Raven said completely flat and deadpan.

"Don't worry about it…" Robin said, waving his hand dismissively. "… There's something else you should know…"

"Uh… what's that?" Smoke asked nervously.

"That we don't blame you about that whole going-berserk-on-the-base thing, Dawg." Cy said solemnly.

"Yes… Someone in a situation such as yours… would have had every right to do so…" Star said softly with a nod.

"Blackfire was right. We're not mad, and we don't want you to leave…" Terra added. "… and… listen, I'm sorry about the other night, I… was just a little irritated. No hard feelings…?"

Smoke blinked for a sec before saying "Uh... sure. No hard feelings." He looked around at his friends gathered around his door. "Guys… I… I'm not real sure what to say…"

As it turns out, he didn't get the chance to say anything; at that exact moment, the alarm went off and blared throughout Titan's Tower…

"What in the…?" Smoke asked, having nearly jumped out of his skin.

"It's the alarm! There's some kind of trouble…" Robin explained.

Smoke and Blackfire looked at each other for a moment before following the others to the operations room.

Cyborg fired up the huge monitor screen, displaying a map of the city. Various labels displayed different locations, and a mark labeled 'Ocean Mist Hospital'. A small spot next to that, the one that normally displayed whomever was doing the troublemaking, only held a small question mark… indicating that the computer's database did not recognize the criminal.

"Okay… It's the hospital." Robin nodded. But he seemed confused. "… I don't get it. Who'd rob or attack a hospital…?"

"It matters not. We must stop them." Star said determinedly.

"Right. We'll take the T-Car…"… that just leaves…" he looked over at Smoke and Blackfire. "Uhh… I don't suppose you'd mind ridin' with Smoke…?"

Blackfire and Smoke glanced at each other for a split second, right before looking away hastily, Blackfire blushing and Smoke clearing his throat and trying to look casual.

"Uh… yeah, sure. I don't mind." Smoke said quickly. "Uhh… unless you'd rather fly, I mean…" he said quickly.

"No… I wanna ride with you." Blackfire said softly. "I'd get tired out flying, anyway…"Forty Five Minutes Later…

After arriving at the hospital, which had thankfully been evacuated, it didn't take our heroes long to figure out something big had gone down…

The doors were blown off the hinges and black scorch marks were everywhere… It looked as if two or three S.W.A.T. teams had attacked the place…

"Whoa… not good." Was the first thing out of Smoke's mouth when he got out of the driver's seat. He held the door open for Blackfire, and they walked over to where the others had already gathered.

They entered the building and found signs of what looked like a large scale assault of some kind… the only other time they'd seen things like this, was when dealing with Brother Blood's H.I.V.E. soldiers.

Cyborg had switched on his shoulder light and was leading the way with Robin. Beast Boy and Star followed shortly after, then Smoke and Blackfire, with Raven bringing up the rear.

"I don't get it… everything's still here, I think… it's just destroyed." Smoke observed. "So… If they didn't come to steal anything… then what did they come for…?"

"I dunno… but we've got to stay alert… chances are that whoever did this is still around…"

They walked a bit more, and suddenly Smoke heard a very slight noise from the hallways ahead… like footsteps…

"Guys!" He hissed, motioning for them to stop. "Listen!"

Raven shifted uncomfortably. "I… I don't hear anything…."

"Are you sure it's not just your nerves, man?" Cy asked.

Beast Boy chimed in. "No… he's right; I heard it, too."

"Beast Boy and Smoke have very impressive hearing…" Star reasoned. "… perhaps they hear something we do not…?"

Smoke strained his ears hard, trying to pick up whatever the noise had been. He heard another sound…

Clumsy, shuffling footsteps… soft grunts… and the sound of cocking guns… then, it hit him.

"GUYS! GET DOWN!" Smoke yelled urgently. An instant later, he fell to the floor, dragging a startled Blackfire down with him… After a second of surprise, the others followed suit.

"Why are we…?" Raven started, but gasped and went silent when a glowing blue sphere of energy when sailing over her head, followed by a barrage of the same blue blasts. The plasma fire decimated the hallway, and the Titans would've been wiped out if they hadn't ducked.

A moment later, the gunfire stopped… and a group of tall, ugly, green creatures with silver armor stepped out with plasma guns.

"Its those Orc things again!" Blackfire shouted, flying up from the floor, and charging up a blackbolt.

(A/N: If Star's energy blasts are called starbolts, it makes sense that Blackfire's are called Blackbolts, right? So, I'm not sure if they're really called that, but I'll refer to them as such anyway.)

Starfire quickly did the same, eyes shining emerald. "They are the monsters from the stadium?" She asked her sister, whom nodded in response.

"Yeah…" Smoke nodded, getting up from the ground "and they just made the biggest mistake of their unnatural lives…"

_**BLAM! BLAM!**_

A couple of roars later, three Orcs fell dead to the ground. The rest of the brutes, enraged, opened plasma fire again.

"Guys, we gotta find some cover!" Cy shouted, almost getting seared by a glowing blue plasma beam. "These beams'll take us out in no time at this rate!"

"This way!" Beast Boy hollered, motioning to a room. Everyone ran in and Smoke bolted the door, placing several chairs on it to form a makeshift barricade.

"This isn't gonna work for long! They'll shoot down the door!" Terra moaned.

"That's what I'm planning on…" Smoke grunted. Everyone looked at him in confusion.

Meanwhile, the Orc soldiers were trying to figure out where the Titans had gone… they checked room after room to no avail. Finally, they realized only one remained unchecked…

With a huge fist, the Orc Sergeant reached out and grabbed the knob… and ripped the door right out of it's frame with a metallic screech… Only to find himself on the wrong end of a sawn off shotgun.

"… How ya doin'?"

_**BLAM!**_

_**BLAM!**_

_**BLAM!**_

_**BLAM!**_

The other Orcs were drenched with green goo as the sergeant was absolutely splattered by a point-blank shot. A four-shell reload and a double-cock later, Smoke was ready to go again.

"Guys!" He pointed at a back door to the room. "Get out, find the rest of these things and wipe 'em out!"

"What about you…?" Black asked.

"I'll be fine… just go and take out the rest before they get out!"

After a moments hesitance, they did as he said and left him standing alone.

The other creatures, recovering from their shock, roared and charged him with guns drawn. Smoke was hit in the gut with a direct stream of plasma, causing a searing pain to shoot up his body… but he never flinched.

Instead, he let fly with shotgun bursts, slaying the monsters one at a time as they came, pausing only to reload. He grunted and jerked every time a shot hit him, but he kept his focus.

He pulled the trigger, and the last Orc of the group fell, it's entire left side blasted clean off.

Smoke popped in more needleshells from his backpack, and looked around breathing heavily… making dead sure there were no more.

He made his way over to a small hospital cot, and fell on it gripping a bleeding wound on his side. He knew it'd heal quickly; they always did… but his rest was short lived.

He suddenly heard the beeps and buzzes of his Titan's communicator. Taking a deep breath to steady his shaky voice, he opened it up and answered.

"… Y-yeah…?"

"Smoke! Are you okay?"

"Yeah… I'm good… where are you guys? Did you kill 'em?"

Robin was wiping green goo off of his Bo staff as he answered. "We got 'em… but there's a problem!"

"What kind of problem?"

"Myntull! He was here!"

Smoke sat bolt upright in the small cot. "Myntull? Here? Where…?"

"He… he escaped… we couldn't stop him! Smoke, he… he took her!"

"Took who?" The gunman demanded.

"Smoke… Blackfire. He's got her… They're gone."

Smoke dropped his communicator with a clatter.

_**That's the end of that chapter! I'm sorry it took so long to get up, but I've been out of town a lot of late… **_

_**Anyway… Read and review as always, please!**_

**_--The Mad Phantom…_**


	17. Chapter Sixteen

_Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans at all._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Sixteen**_

It was about lunchtime in Jump City, and most of the fast-food joints and fancy restaurants were opening up for business. In fact, one pair of women were just sitting down at an outdoor table with a tray of foot… when a red blur abruptly screamed by on the street, sending the food flying out of her hands and onto a nearby table… amazingly, nothing actually spilled…

The red blur was, in fact, the R-Cycle; it was being driven by none other than the Boy Wonder himself: Robin.

Taking one hand off the wheel for a moment, he reached quickly down into his belt and pulled out his Titan's communicator.

"Cy! B.B.! You there?"

Sure enough, Cyborg answered from behind the Wheel of the T-Car with Beast Boy riding shotgun.

"Yeah, we're still here."

"Have you found any trace of Myntull or Blackfire…?" Robin asked hopefully.

Cyborg sighed heavily and shook his head, his one real eye dimming sadly. "… No. We haven't found anything…"

"Keep looking!" Rob responded quickly "Myntull couldn't have gone far, no matter how fast he is."

"Will do!" Beast Boy said, poking his head onto the screen for a moment, before Cy pushed him away looking slightly irked. They hung up a moment later.

Groaning inwardly, Robin kicked the gearshift up a notch and started blazing down the street at even higher speed than before…

They had to find them.

* * *

Starfire was soaring frantically from rooftop to rooftop, looking around to get a wide view of the City. The last time they'd seen Myntull, he'd appeared suddenly as if out of nowhere, and sprayed Blackfire with some sort of gas from his chest… shortly afterwards, she'd collapsed unconscious… 

They'd tried to help, but before they could even react, he'd grabbed her up in his tail and took of with his wings and jets…

And now, they had to find them… **quickly**.

Starfire didn't know what the mechanized madman had in store for her sister… or why he'd only been interested in her, not them… but regardless of the reason, he was going to pay.

Her eyes briefly glowed bright green for a moment, giving off a sizzling sound like crackling energy… then, they returned to their normal shade of emerald with a melancholy expression.

"Sister… where _are_ you…?" She whispered sadly.

Grabbing her communicator, she spoke: "Smoke! Smoke, where are you? Have you found anything at all?"

A moment of static on the screen followed, before an image of Smoke fizzled to life before her. He answered, but she could barely hear him over the thunderous roar of his truck's engine.

"No… I'm looking, but I haven't seen **anything**!" He cried, frustrated and angry. A moment later, Star winced as he slammed his fist into the dashboard and bellowed angrily. "I don't _believe_ this! He has to be **SOMEWHERE** in this damn city! It shouldn't be _this_ _hard_ to find a giant robot with guns all over it!"

"You must not be angry with yourself. We are all searching as hard as we can…"

"Y-yeah… you're right, it's just…" He trailed off for a moment… "If he hurts her, I _swear_…" He blurted out suddenly. "… I _swear_ I'll rip him apart, **wire**… **by**… **wire**."

Starfire was silent. She didn't blame him at all for his anger, but… seeing him like this, it kind of… disturbed her. His intentions were good, she knew; but in this state of mind, he was probably capable of anything.

"Smoke… please. Do not be so…" Starfire searched for the correct word. "… Reckless. I am as angry as you are, but… you must try to remain calm. For Blackfire's sake…"

The gunner shook his head apologetically. "I… Sorry, Star. I lost control of myself for a minute there…" He sighed. "I'm gonna keep looking."

"I shall continue my search, as well." Star said with a nod. "Goodbye, Friend Smoke."

"Right… 'Bye, Star."

_**At Pretty Much The Same Time, Except In Castle Norblitz…**_

There was a sharp metallic clang as Sub-Zero knocked the lance out of a Black Rider's hands and spin-kicked it in mid-air, causing it to shatter into tiny pebbles.

The rider made a lunge for Zero with it's hands outstretched, but the knight retaliated by slashing in an upwards arc with Eviglasere, chopping off both of the hands.

Without skipping a beat, Sub-Zero did a backwards flip and landed several feet away. He looked up with a lopsided grin.

"Now… eat this!"

Stretching out both hands, there was the sound of a cold breeze, and blue and white energy began gathering at his palms. It charged upfor a moment, before a bright flash of light, and it launched forwards with an ice beam.

The hapless ash-golem was frozen right in place… and a moment later; it dissolved rapidly into a pile of snow, which quickly melted under the heat of the island.

Sub-Zero sighed and put away his weaponry, kneeling down and blasting his face with a cold breeze. He really hated this heat… and he wasn't sure how much longer he could take it without losing some of his edge.

About this time, a panting Jinx and Flake-Bane both ran into the corridor where Zero was kneeling. They stopped and looked around, seeing masses of shattered black armor and ash. Apparently, there'd been a battle…

"Zero! Why didn't you wait for us?" Jinx demanded in exasperation.

"Yeah, mate. We would've helped ya, but…you were running so fast, you left us behind!" Bane added.

The warrior sighed and slumped forward. "Sorry… I know. But… I was in a hurry! I want to get to this Hellwing guy, right now! It's time to put him in his place."

"I agree." Jinx said with a nod and she put a hand on his shoulder. She kneeled down, and put her other hand on his cheek. "… but you're going to have to slow down. We can't keep up with you, and besides, you've been fighting those things by yourself! We haven't even struck a blow…"

"She's right…" Flake-Bane admitted. He took out his hatchet and another from inside his cloak, making it a pair of them. "Why do you think I brought these? I ain't just along for the ride!"

"All right… I'll slow down. But we need to hurry! I don't know what else this maniac's planning to do, but… it can't be good."

"I heard that." Bane agreed. "But… the castle is huge! Where could he be…?"

"There." Zero pointed towards a large tower outside a nearby window, at least twice as tall as the rest, and fortified with cannons and archery placements on the sides. At it's peak was what looked like a small fortress mounted on top.

"It's the keep. My money says he's in there; it's the safest place."

"Then let's go!" Jinx said. "I want to take this guy down so we can go home…" She sighed sadly. "Zero… I'm sorry. This has NOT been the vacation I'd planned."

"No, I'm glad! If you hadn't of thought to come here… I wouldn't have found out about all this… and I wouldn't have been able to stop it. I love this place, Jinx… and I'm not going to see it destroyed by some second rate magician."

He put an arm around her neck and she blushed. They looked into each other's eyes for a moment… then, Jinx leaned upwards and Zero tilted his head downwards. They kissed each other deeply… they hadn't done so in a while, so it felt good to do it again.

Unfortunately, they were so caught up in the moment, they completely lost all sense of time… The next thing they knew, they were hearing someone clear their throat…

"… Ahem…"

They flinched and turned to see Bane standing their leaning against a wall, twirling an ice-hatchet lazily.

He shifted uncomfortably. "Er… Lord Zero, if we're going to go, then… we should go. I mean, you two have been doing that the last couple minutes, and uh…" His voiced wavered, and trailed off sheepishly.

They both blinked incredulously. A couple minutes…? Had it been that long?

Zero's pale face flushed somewhat and he cleared his throat. "Uh… right. Shall we?" He motioned forward with a sweep of his cape.

_**Later on, Back In Jump City**_

"We never found anything…"

Robin and the other's had all regrouped at the Tower after having scoured the city. They'd searched every inch of every street; they'd inspected every building from attic to basement; they'd walked down every alleyway and tunnel; they'd gone through the sewers, and they'd even spread out and looked around the surrounding countryside outside City limits…

… Yet, all their efforts were for naught. No sign of Myntull or Blackfire had been found.

Smoke was sitting Indian-style in a corner with his head in his hands. He wasn't faring too well… not at all. Starfire, although she wasn't in much better shape, was floating beside him, attempting to console him.

Beast Boy and Terra were talking, trying to figure out any area's they might have missed, and both Cyborg and Robin were at a monitor screen staring at a map of the City intently.

Raven was meditating… it was the only thing she knew to do, and besides that, it helped her think more clearly.

"I don't understand this… we searched everywhere." Terra mumbled.

Beast Boy nodded in agreement. "Yeah… and they couldn't have left the city, not that fast. He's got to be here in the city… somewhere."

Smoke continued to sit silently with Starfire staring worriedly at him.

"Terra's right…" Cy added. The map he was looking at displayed every area they'd searched in blue, and at the moment, the entire map had become blue. "… We didn't miss anything. So either he's long gone… or he's got one Hell of a hideout somewhere."

Robin sighed and walked over to Smoke, still sitting down facing the floor.

"Smoke… I know this is rough on you, but…" Robin paused hesitantly. "… Do you remember anywhere he would've gone…? I mean, any… secret military establishments or anything?"

Smoke looked up at him blearily, his eyes questioning.

"I know you destroyed the base. But… Is it possible there was somewhere else in the city that wasn't publicly known? A secret military area or something…?" Robin's abruptly fell silent. "Smoke… I hate to ask so much of you like this. But you know more about this guy and more about his operations than any of us… so is there anything, anything at all, you remember that might help?"

Smoke groaned and shook his head. His eyes were tired and glassy, but still, he seemed in deep thought. He cleared his throat and softly began to speak.

"There... There was another place… I dunno, it was… some kind of hangar or something. They just used it for storage most of the time, but... I was taken there a couple times for… tests and stuff… but… I don't know where it was."

Robin pressed on anyway. "Do you remember how they got you there?" He asked urgently.

Smoke nodded vaguely. "I think… no… I know how. There was a railway."

"A… railway?" Robin asked, surprised. "In the base?"

"Yeah… yeah, I remember. They stuck me in one of those capsules… put me in the back car on this, this… monorail thingy. And we rode for an hour or so… and then… we were there, at that hangar…"

Terra interrupted. "But if you blew up the base… wouldn't it have been destroyed?"

"No. No, they always kept it sealed off; there was lots of security there… locks, alarms, guards, the whole bit. I'm not sure what that hangar place was, but… It had to have been important. I don't think that the explosion touched it…"

"Yeah, but do you think we could still use it?" Robin asked. "Do you think we could go down in what's left of the base and find this railway?"

Smoke seemed hesitant. He looked as if he were on the verge of saying, 'I don't know'.

"It could be the only way we could get to Myntull… and Blackfire."

All the Titans were looking at him now. Robins masked gaze, Starfire's worried, but hopeful expression… Cyborg's one human eye focused on him, Beast Boy's curious stare, Terra's pleading look… even Raven had snapped out of her meditation and was looking at him in a way that seemed to cut right through him.

He searched his mind, trying to figure out if it would still be there…

"Guys… I don't know. But it's the only shot we've got, so…" Smoke's eyes hardened "Let's do it."

_**Norblitz…**_

The rocky walls of the transformed castle shook violently as the trio made their way up the floors and flights of staircases, fighting an army of Black Riders along the way.

"How much farther is it to the throne room in the keep?" Jinx yelled to Zero as she spun-kicked a Rider's head off, and blasted the headless armor with a hex that blew it away.

"Only a couple more floors until the keep entrance!" He responded, lobbing spheres of ice that punched holes in the bodies of the shadowy foes, allowing ash to spill out and thus rendering them lifeless.

"Then…" Added Bane, who was doing his best to keep up with the other two and hurl his icy axes at enemies upon which point they returned to him like boomerangs. "All we have to do is make our way up to the throne room! Von Hellwing's got to be there!"

After much fighting, they reached the end of a long chamber. In front of them was a grand staircase… formerly, it had been formed out of tightly packed snow in the shape of steps, but now it consisted of ash-covered red bricks.

Sub-Zero sighed heavily. He was getting tired of seeing such familiar sights in such an unfamiliar state…

"… The keep entrance is up that way…" He said after a moment of silence. "… Let's go. I don't know what this maniac has in store for us, but…" His red eyes flashed with a pallid blue color. "… We'll be ready."

_**That's the end of another chapter. **_

_**Again, I'm deeply sorry about how long this update took… but I've been out-of-state lately with no computer to use. However, the next couple weeks I'll be off a lot, so expect some quality updates!**_

_**By the way… for anybody who's digging this story so far, I've started work on an Alternate Universe fic containing my OC's and all the original Teen Titans characters, too. It's titled, "Moonlight Maelstrom", and I'll be writing it in tandem with this fic. Check it out; I need to know what people think of it.**_

_**As always, read and review! It helps me out a lot.**_

_**--The Mad Phantom…**_


	18. Chapter Seventeen

_Disclaimer: I haven't got so much as a sliver of ownership of the Teen Titans, and as much as I'm sure they'd enjoy it, none of the blood-sucking lawyers are going to be able to get me anytime soon… So there._

**_Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Seventeen_**

"Man, This place… is a wreck…" Robin commented, stepping over a pile of charred bricks.

As soon as Smoke had said there might be a chance that the railway was still intact, The Titans had rushed to the base…

… Or what little was left of it.

All the place was now… was an empty, scorched ruin filled with busted machinery, a mess of debris, and the occasional empty barrel or crate. The walls, blackened with soot and burnt-marks, seemed almost to close in on them as they walked. Some of them tilted and leaned at strange angles, knocked around by the bomb blast Smoke had set off.

Smoke led the way, being the most familiar with these surroundings… but even he wasn't sure where was where. Everything was in ruins now, and it was hard to navigate.

Smoke glanced at a hallway ahead of them. A sign on a nearby wall had a floor number and an arrow… or it should have, but it was so badly burnt up and smashed that it was utterly unreadable. Still though, Smoke recognized the hallway almost immediately.

"Guys! Elevator's this way…" he motioned for them to follow and set off down the dark passageway. "I doubt it still works, but… even if it doesn't, there's some stairs nearby we can use."

He strained his eyes to see in the pitch-blackness, but to limited effect. He didn't want to be walking around blind in this place…

"Uh… Hey, Cy… how about a light?" He asked.

"Gotcha covered." Cy said with a nod, deploying his shoulder-mounted spotlight.

Instantly, bright, white light flooded the cramped hallway and illuminated it in its entirety.

"Thanks…"

They continued on through the corridor, passing several rooms… all of which were barren and empty, although one of them did have what looked like the ashen remains of a desk, and one still had a sink mounted into the wall… but the facet was snapped off, and ash drifted little-by-little out of it's stump.

"This place gives me the creeps…" Terra mumbled, looking around uncomfortably. She relaxed a bit though, when Beast Boy gave her arm a reassuring squeeze.

"It's not that bad…" He said. "… Be glad you weren't there when we watched that Wicked Scary movie that time…"

"Man, don't even bring that up!" Cy growled. "… This is **NOT** the place to be reliving that again…"

"How could a movie be that bad…?" Terra asked skeptically.

Starfire shuddered, and motioned towards Raven.

"Ask her." Beast Boy said flatly, but he gulped and ducked behind Terra when the sorceress in question gave him a slightly irked glare.

"It wasn't much better before I blew it up." Smoke said indifferently. "… The only thing different now is that it's got less furniture, more junk, and a few less bastards layin' around."

Starfire watched Smoke's back with a troubled expression. Ever since they'd come back here, Smoke had been… slightly different. He'd not been talking as much as he normally did, and his expression was in the same melancholy look he'd had for a while now.

_'This place…'_ She remembered, _'… it holds so many memories for him. Terrible memories… he must hate being here now, after he thought he'd never have to see this place again.'_

"… Crap!" A muffled grunt came from the end of the hallway, where Smoke was.

He was pushing the call-elevator button frantically, but to no avail. The small, cracked button flashed feebly a couple moments before fading back again… nothing happened.

"It's busted." He groaned. "… Must've happened in the bomb blast."

With an annoyed snarl, he brought his fists down on the elevator doors so hard, that they smashed inwards with an ear-splitting, metallic screech and tumbled noisily down the dilapidated elevator shaft.

"I guess we take the stairs…" Robin sighed. "… Where are they?"

Smoke pointed to a corner of the small lobby they were in, motioning to an opening in the wall that used to be a doorframe. "There."

They made their way over and walked into a tall, but cramped, staircase. Cyborg looked down the center of the staircase, through what seemed like several hundred flights of steps…

Robin started to walk down, but Smoke abruptly stopped him. "Wait a minute… I'll go first." He noticed a surprised look from Robin.

"If anything happens down there… I want it to happen to me first." Smoke explained.

"… If anything happens?" Beast Boy echoed.

"Look, I know that sounds stupid… but…" Smoke seemed to be struggling for an explanation. "… I just have a bad feeling about this, so… humor me for a while, okay?"

They all nodded, and followed the gunman down the staircase…

The old metal stairs creaked and groaned and made eerie snapping or popping noises as they tread on it. This, combined with the tap of Smoke's cowboy boots and the way the noises echoed and reverberated all around the cramped stairwell… made it extremely unnerving

"Smoke… how much farther do you think these stairs descend?" Star asked uncertainly. She, like Terra, was beginning to get a tad freaked out by this place.

"S'not much farther…" Smoke said. "Don't worry."

They continued downward for a couple more minutes, there were only about a dozen more flights of stairs to go down before they reached the basement levels.

"Smoke… do you remember where the entrance to this railway is?" Robin asked. "I mean, once we get down there, do you think you can find it?"

Smoke sighed. "Well… I mean…" He seemed uncertain. "Well, I don't really remember exactly how to find it, but… I'll remember it if I see it. I'm positive."

Robin started to ask something else, but a loud groaning of metal under pressure interrupted him. They looked around, trying to figure out what was happening… until; part of the metal stairs suddenly gave way below Cyborg.

"**_Aaaargh!_**"

"**_CY_**!"

He fell down into the black below them, spiraling downwards… until something grabbed his arm.

It was a large green anaconda that had itself wrapped around Cy's arm. It was Beast Boy, but he couldn't hold Cyborg's weight for very long.

Thankfully, he didn't have to because Star flew downwards and took Cyborg from him, carrying Cy back up to the others. Beast Boy slithered back up a moment later, and changed back into his normal form.

"_Cy_! Are you alright?" Robin asked worriedly.

"Y-yeah… I'm fine." He said. "Thanks to B.B. and Star."

Smoke looked warily at the steps they had left. "I hope no more of them do that…" He groaned. "But… in case they do, Star and B.B. be ready, okay?"

"Right." Beast Boy nodded.

"Understood." Added Star.

"Good… now, let's hurry before anything else goes wrong…"

After much nervous walking, they finally reached the bottom of the base, where Smoke said the entrance was.

"It's hidden somewhere down here…" Smoke muttered. "I remember…"

"Hidden?" Beast Boy demanded. "You've got to be kidding… we'll never find it down here! This place is huge!"

"I'll know it when I see it." Smoke assured. "Trust me…"

"Should we split up…?" Terra asked.

"Well… we could do more searching faster that way." Robin thought. He turned to Smoke. "What do you think?"

Smoke shifted uncomfortably, reaching downwards and grasping the handle of his revolver. "I… I don't think that's a good idea." He said softly. "I mean, I see what you're saying, but…"

Smoke tried to think how to best voice his concerns without sounding paranoid.

"Look… It's just that… Myntull's damn smart. And he's getting smarter by the minute. Now, I'm probably wrong, and this is probably nothing, but…" Smoke's gaze hardened somewhat. "How do we know he's not expecting us? How do we know that this isn't just some kind of trap with Blackfire as the bait?"

Robin nodded in understanding, and opened his mouth to answer… but it was not his voice they heard next.

"**Very observant of you, prototype**."

A mortifyingly familiar, mechanical-sounding voice echoed loudly throughout the burnt-out walls and ashen floors of the ruins. Smoke instantly recoiled as if he'd been struck. With eyes of disbelief, he looked over to a nearby speaker on the wall. Despite it's delapitdated appearance... it, apparently, was still in working order.

"… _You_…"

**"Correct. I am me. Who else would I be? First, you act intelligently, and then you go right back to mental mediocrity… I should've known it wouldn't last."**

Muttering darkly and reaching for his shotgun, Smoke started to reply… but Starfire spoke first.

_"Where is my sister?" _The Tamaranean demanded, eyes crackling furiously with emerald power.

**"All in good time… after all, where would the challenge be if I were to just hand her over to you?"**

"How's **_this_** for a challenge?" Smoke barked. "You give me back Blackfire, or else I start blowing holes in that giant bucket you call a body!" With a metal snapping sound, Smoke inserted some shells into the barrels of his shotgun, cocking the gun and getting ready to fire.

**"Mmm… Now you see, _THIS_ is exactly why I proposed we work with robotic subjects in the first place. None of these silly temper-tantrums like you find in organic beings." **Myntull's voice echoed around.** "… Unfortunately, my colleagues insisted upon creating an organic, flesh-and-bone prototype. They never understood that even that couldn't give a weapon a soul. A pity."**

The words '_weapon'_ and '_soul'_ seemed to have a particularly painful effect on the gunner; he flinched as he heard them.

**"If you really do want the girl back, it's a simple matter." **He continued, **"All you need do is find her, and you can have her. Assuming you can survive that long, of course. But I digress; you should hurry… after all, time waits for no one. And if you don't find her quickly, then I really do fear for your darling little alien bi—"**

_**BLAM!**_

Thenearby loudspeaker erupted into sparks and flames, torn apart by a point blank shotgun blast.

Smoke, breathing heavily, emptied the shells and popped some fresh one's in. Holstering the gun, he fell to his knees abruptly, a loud '_thump'_ echoing around the barren room.

"Guys… we have to hurry. If he hurts her, I…" Smoke couldn't seem to finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear anyway, for two reasons. One, anybody could've understood that he still blamed himself somewhat for all this, and two…

… It looked like he was crying.

Everybody stared, not quite believing what they were looking at. But sure enough, every couple seconds, a small dripping sound was barely audible as a teardrop hit the tarnished metal flooring below.

Smoke abruptly felt a light touch on his right shoulder. Sighing, he looked up… it was Raven.

"Smoke… you've got to pull yourself together. We'll never find that secret entrance with you like this…" She said, helping him to his feet. "… and if we can't do that, we can't get to Blackfire."

He shook his head a bit, trying to regain his composure. Finally, he took a deep breath and nodded. "I… I'm sorry. I'm being weak again. If I…"

"You're not being weak." Raven interrupted him. "You're worried, and maybe a little scared. But that's what proves Myntull wrong. If you were the soulless thing he said you were, you wouldn't be feeling like this."

"She's right." Robin added. "So don't let what he said get to you."

"Yeah, you're ten times more human than he'll ever be!" Cy agreed.

"Th-thanks… guys." Smoke said with a faint grin. "But… we should hurry. I know that entrance is here somewhere… somewhere near."

* * *

The first thing Blackfire noticed when she began regaining consciousness was that she couldn't move. 

Her eye's fluttered open, and she moaned softly as they began to get used to the light again. Once her vision stopped swirling and blurring, she managed to get a better look at where she was.

She was lying on a metal operating table, strapped down by what seemed to be thick metal bands. She grunted and strained, trying to break free, but to no avail. Whatever these were made of, they weren't going to break.

Getting an idea, she smirked and began charging up a blackbeam from her eyes, and prepared to blast her way out. Her eyes flashed a purplish color, emitting the sound of sizzling energy. A moment later, a dark violet beam erupted forth from her eyes, heading straight for the metal bonds on her arms.

The blast hit dead on, and should have blown the thick straps to pieces, but… they just seemed to soak up the beam. She continued blasting, focusing more energy into her shots, but the bands just absorbed it, not even scorching.

She stopped, and stared in puzzlement…

… And then, pain like she'd never felt before erupted throughout her body.

"**_AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH_**!"

She quivered and squirmed on the table, shrieking at the top of her lungs. She felt as if she'd just been engulfed by hot flames.

The awful pain subsided a few moments later, leaving her to pant and moan there, still trembling violently.

"It's no use, I'm afraid." A slightly wheezing voice from the other side of the room, "Those restriction bands were specially built by yours truly."

Blackfire managed to crack her eyes open and look towards the source of the voice.

The small, dingy chamber she was in was visible through a small, square window. There, behind the window, was the creature she last wanted to see.

"… You! **Myntull**!"

The huge mechanical psychopath's brain bubbled and frothed slightly, as if quite pleased with itself.

"Yes… but enough about myself, tell me: how do you like my reflector bonds? Quite ingenious, really. They simply take in whatever energy thrown at them… whether it be the force of a blow, electric shocks, lasers, or in your case, alien energy bolts… and charge it up. Then, it is applied double-fold to the subject in question."

She stared. He meant that it zapped her with her own blasts? How could that be?

"It's not worth the trouble to try and escape. If I were you, I'd just take myself a nap… after all, patience is a virtue."

Blackfire snapped out of her shocked state, and burst out angrily. "You wait 'till the others get here! They'll take your ass apart so badly, you'll wish you'd never heard of them!" She screamed, eyes glowing fiercely.

"No, girl. Your friends will die long before they even arrive here, much less find you." He rumbled electronically. "But don't get discouraged…. You won't be far behind."

With that, Myntull's long, whip-like tail slithered up from behind it's back and began tapping buttons on a broad control panel in front of him.

Almost instantly, the lights in the tiny chamber dimmed, and the table Blackfire was strapped to began leaning back so that she was lying flat on her back. She struggled, but to no effect.

With a loud clanging sound, the roof of the room swung open like a horizontal pair of doors. A moment later, a long metal tentacle shot out like a snake, quickly joined by another like it.

They flailed around for a moment, then slithered down to her and brushed against her face, causing her to shudder slightly at the cold, hard, metallic texture.

Suddenly, there was a sound like someone had flipped out a switchblade knife. Tensing up, Blackfire prepared for pain… but none was felt. She looked at the mechanized tentacles, and gasped.

They had flipped open at their ends, as if on hinges. From the openings were long, sharpened needles.

Stretching out, the pair of appendages pointed the needles at either side of Blackfire's neck, only inches away from her skin. They froze, remaining in this position.

"My dear, you should be honored. You are to be the very first test subject for one of the deadliest concoctions mankind has ever seen."

He folded his arms, or at least the Gatling gun and buzz saw that served as arms, across his metal chest. "The needles you see before you contain an advanced mixture consisting mainly of liquid Cyanide that has been filled with tiny pellets of Ricin. This makes it one of the deadliest poisons in existence."

Myntull's left wing unfurled and used its clawed tip to flip a nearby switch on the wall. Blackfire yelped and closed her eyes, thinking the needles were about to be plunged into her neck…

Instead, part of the wall at the opposite end of the room from Myntull sunk into the floor, revealing a concealed opening… a large monitor screen on treads rolled out, and stopped itself once it was in the little room.

It's screen crackled and filled with static a couple times, before it let off a shower of sparks and blinked to life with the displayed image, "12:00".

"The prototype has 12 hours. No more, no less. If he defeats my troops and traps and manages to find you, then you're free to go. If he does not, however, you will die. Your fate is in his hands…" He paused. "… In other words, you are quite doomed. Cheerio!"

And with that, he turned a dial on the control panel and sunk down into the floor on a lowering platform, leaving behind a very nervous alien girl.

**_That's the end of that particular chapter. I was going to write a bit more, but I realized this was beginning to get rather long, and besides… this makes for a good cliffhanger. The Next couple chapters have a big shock in store for not just Smoke and the Titans, but Myntull, too. Let's just say that Smoke is going to be granted a new ability, one that'll really let him light things up.  
_**

**_Remember: A review a day keeps the Myntull away. And gets the next chapter up sooner, probably._**

**_Oh yes, before I forget, I wanted to thank everyone again for all the reviews and support I've gotten thus far._**

**_Later_**

**_--The Mad Phantom…_**


	19. Chapter Eighteen

_Disclaimer: I don't own 'em. Didn't. Don't. And won't._

**_Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Eighteen_**

A figure in blood-red robes sat upon a throne of dark, red-streaked volcanic rock. A pair of massive torches burnt on either side of him.

The small, dark, chamber he was in had absolutely no light besides those two torches, and would've been pitch black were it not for the ambient, yellow-red glow of the lava pools on either side of the room.

His hooded head was obscured completely from view, but his hands were large, and heavily tanned, covered in the wrinkles and blemishes of age. His long, gnarled fingers jutted from his hands in such a way that they almost resembled the roots of a tree… or perhaps the claws of an animal.

He sat silently, as though meditating, when abruptly, he brought his hands up before him and clapped his hands together twice in quick succession. He waited…

Almost immediately, the huge, spike-studded, wrought iron doors grated open slowly, and a tall, gaunt figure in black armor carrying a stone lance entered… a Black Rider.

"He is near." The robed one spoke in a voice of calm. Yet, it also seemed to hiss slightly, kind of like a snake. "Find him. Do not kill him. Bring him to me."

The armored ash-golem saluted silently, before walking back out the doors, which swung noisily closed behind him. The robed figure sat there still, never having moved this entire time.

He suddenly did move, though… he outstretched his long hand, and held it open with heavily wrinkled palms facing up. "Show me… the one." He whispered hoarsely.

Instantly, it was as though someone had lit a fire on his palm. It flared up, maybe a couple feet, and then spat out a floating red sphere.

The glowing orb levitated there, as the fires on his hand went back out. It blinked a couple times, letting off black smoke… and then, it shot off a shower of orange sparks, right before changing shape.

The glowing fire orb now resembled a mirror. In it's crimson reflection; there was a group of three, fighting armored figures.

A young man… a girl… and the one. The one he had waited for so long.

"Time is a factor, young Sub-Zero. Pray you, make haste…" The man chuckled deeply, his bass voice reverberating of the stone walls.

He sat back on his throne, and continued to wait… always waiting… always watching… and always listening.

* * *

"We're almost there." Flake-Bane grunted, hacking into a Black Rider with the frozen blades of his axes. "Just one more floor to go."

"Good. I'm getting tired of these things." Zero replied with a sigh. He'd just finished off another Rider with an icy blast of wind.

"Are you sure this is where this guy is?" Jinx asked. "I mean, wouldn't he have come out here by now… tried to stop us?"

"Maybe we've got him hiding scared." Bane snickered in response.

"I doubt it…" Zero said. "… If he was powerful enough to do all this… then I don't think he'd hide from anything."

"Whatever the case is, we should hurry up… before more Black Riders show up." Bane advised.

They nodded and made their way up several flights of stairs. They couldn't help but notice… the higher up in the keep tower they went, the darker it got. It was as though they were entering a place where light could not go… the glow from lava pits in the floors were the only light sources.

The walls of the tower were stone, lined with glimmering cracks that shone a brilliant shade of orange-red, as though burning on the inside.

Large bowl-shaped torches were scattered around, burning with tall flames, and stained glass windows of reds, yellows, oranges, and blacks were built into the stone, making this place look like some kind of Hellish cathedral.

"I hate this…" Sub-Zero muttered. "… This isn't right…"

He felt a pair of arms around his neck. He looked back and saw Jinx leaning up to hug him. "It's going to be all right, Sub-Zero. We'll make him change it back."

"And then, we can go home." He agreed with a faint smile.

"Yes…"

Bane watched the two of them silently. He didn't say anything, but… he felt a little depressed. He knew that his friend, Sub-Zero, loved this girl. He understood that. But… this place… this island… it had always been home for him before. Now, he was at home somewhere else. It saddened him.

Swallowing his reluctance, he mumbled something softly.

Zero looked away from Jinx and looked at Bane in surprise. "Huh? Did you say something?"

"I said…" He started softly. "That… well… this **is** home. For you… _isn't_ it…?"

Sub-Zero gazed guiltily at the ground. "Well… yes. I mean, it is, but…" He couldn't finish.

"This is still his home." Jinx said. "It's just that… well, Titan's Tower is his home away from home." She said.

Bane looked at them with mild interest. "So… you have two homes. I see…"

"Bane, I'm sorry, I didn't mean…"

"No… it's all right. But I want you to know something Sub-Zero."

Zero tilted his head slightly, blinking with curiosity. "What's that?"

"No matter how long you're away… no matter how much time you spend at your other home…" Bane's red eyes softened somewhat. "… You will always have a place to call home here. Please… Don't ever forget that."

"And you, too." Bane added, looking at Jinx. "Because any friend of Lord Zero's… is most definitely a friend of ours."

Sub-Zero leaned against a wall and smiled genuinely for the first time in a while. "Bane… I…" he couldn't really put what he was feeling into words. "… thanks. Thanks a lot…"

"Yeah. It means a lot to us… I mean…" Jinx paused hesitantly. "Zero… he did kind of make a lot of people unhappy, didn't he… When he left with me?"

"Well, not unhappy in an angry sense. Sure, we were all sad to see him go. But no one was ever angry. What he felt for you… was more important than what we wanted. We all understood that."

Jinx blushed. "I… thank you all so much."

"S'no problem. Just remember…" Flake-Bane joked. "… You better treat Zero right, or I'll be knockin' on your door soon enough."

Jinx blushed even more heavily and Sub-Zero actually laughed.

Bane, feeling a bit better now, and actually glad he could cheer his companions up, smiled.

"So… shall we press on?"

* * *

The same robed man still sat in the very same position we left him in. The only movement came from his gnarly fingers, which were tapping the rough, stone arms of the throne impatiently.

"He… should… be here." He said slowly. "Why is he taking so long…?"

As if on cue, the doors to the throne room flew open, and a Black Rider came soaring through the air, landing with a crash and bursting apart.

He looked at the remains of the minion interestedly. "So… now, it begins."

"No! Now, it **ENDS**!" Someone yelled angrily from the doorway.

It was Sub-Zero, with Flake-Bane on his left and Jinx on his right.

"Lord Von Hellwing, I presume?" Zero said, walking in the doorway.

The robed man remained silent.

"What's the matter…? Cat got your tongue?" Jinx demanded venomously, her own feline eyes blazing with a bright-pink shine.

Still, the old wizard was motionless.

Flake-Bane, despite his former courage, was beginning to become nervous, but he still managed to talk. "Don't just sit there! Say something! Explain yourself!"

The figure was still unfazed.

But then, he reached up, and removed his hood… and the trio of heroes gasped.

His head was completely bald, but a pair of long, jet-black horns protruded from his forehead and ended in sharp, hook-like points.

His eyes were yellow. Not the pupils, the eye itself was yellow… he had no visible pupils, just those unblinking yellow orbs.

His wrinkly skin was dark and tanned, as though it had been exposed to large amounts of heat and sunlight in it's day.

"So… the famed Sub-Zero has arrived. I'm pleased to make your acquaintance at last."

Sub-Zero's crimson eyes were wide with confusion. That had hardly been the welcome he'd expected… but that didn't matter. Shaking his head, his gaze turned icy and vengeful again.

"You try to destroy my island, and then you greet me like a friend?" He growled. "What the Hell is wrong with you?"

"Oh… you don't like the island? Why, my troops thought it was marvelous." His voice retained a tone of polite conversation. "And I daresay none of the natives complained."

Flake-Bane yanked out an axe and began stomping angrily forward, but Jinx grabbed him and held him back.

"Don't be stupid!" She hissed in his ear. "Wait until Zero gives us the signal…"

"If you're so upset at the island… here." The man upheld his hands.

Instantly, Hellwing's hands glowed jet-black and deep purple, shadowy energy collecting in his palms.

Sub-Zero tensed up, shield at the ready… he was expecting an attack…

But none came.

Instead, the dark energy began spreading. The obsidian orb that Von Hellwing had created began immediately enlarging… eventually; it covered him like a cloud, and began spreading across the walls, the floor, the ceiling… the entire room.

Sub-Zero, Jinx, and Flake-Bane immediately began backing up, wary of the shadowy magic crawling steadily towards them.

Suddenly, it lunged out, like a massive shockwave and the force of it knocked them to the ground. All was suddenly shadow; the world around them turned obsidian.

Jinx immediately realized she wasn't actually hurt, and looked up through this dark haze to make sure Zero and Bane were unharmed. Fortunately, they were also unscathed.

"What's he doing?" Bane asked, his voice panicked.

"I… I don't know!" Jinx cried. "I've never seen magic like this…"

Sub-Zero looked around, at the progressively darkening world around him, and began getting nervous… what was Hellwing up to…?

And then, as suddenly as there had been darkness… there was now light. A blazing brightness caused them to cover their eyes, and strain against the blinding lights all around.

After a few moments, the light faded, and Sub-Zero was the first to open his eyes. After they once again became adjusted to the light, he looked around… and cried out hoarsely.

He was home.

The massive stone cathedral they'd been in before was now back to its original state; Castle Norblitz was now intact once more.

The frozen walls of ice, the elegant silver-framed windows that were frosted over and adorned with icicles and draped with silken blue curtains, the torches now burning with familiar blue-flames instead of the Hellish red ones from before.

Stumbling to his feet, Sub-Zero forgot about Hellwing entirely.

He dashed to a massive, ornate window that looked out over the island. The keep tower was the tallest part of the castle; almost the entire island was visible.

Yanking back it's blue curtains and wiping off a layer of frost, he looked out and gasped.

Mountains. Snow-peaked mountains. And glaciers, they were back too. The coastline off to the west was now back to it's original splendor, covered in snow with frozen waters.

Even the woods were now back. Where Zero and Jinx had traversed a field of stone spires, there were now the ancient, gnarled, leafless trees that Sub-Zero was so used to.

But most of all, Zero saw the snow. It was falling down even now, from the heavens like a blessing. Every single snowflake he saw seemed like a miracle compared to the wasteland it had been when they'd arrived.

Stumbling back, Sub-Zero fell to his knees and stared out the window. He was silent…

Jinx and Bane were also shocked and speechless.

Jinx was the first one to regain her composure enough to talk. She looked at Hellwing quizzically. "You… you changed it back. Just like that." It was almost a question; her voice was confused.

"My dear… this was never about this island. I didn't come here just to obliterate a nation. Why, that would be irrational… not to mention, wasteful."

"I don't get it." Bane grunted. "You show up, place everyone under house arrest, fill the city with those… those…. Monstrosities… and… change our lands into a no-man's-land. And then… you change it back? For no reason?"

At this point, Hellwing was silent. Then, he chuckled. It was loud, rumbling, and malicious… despite his fiery nature, his laugh sent chills down the spines of everyone present.

"My… you poor, poor _primitives_. You honestly don't understand the situation here, do you…?"

His eerie, pupil-less eyes stared at them without so much as a twitch or a blink. And then, he smiled… displaying a full mouth of sharpened fang-teeth.

"This was never about the island. This is not about your people." He paused. Then, he looked over to Zero, who was still gazing wistfully out the window. "… This is about **You**, Sub-Zero. **_You_**."

Zero turned around, shifting uncomfortably and eying Von Hellwing warily. "… Me?"

"Yes…" He hissed, the _'s'_ sound in his word long and drawn out. "… _You_."

"You were comfortable in that Tower, with your friends… weren't you?" He asked icily. "There was no way you would've come back here. But, I wanted you to come, so I came… I saw…. And I conquered." He sneered.

"But still, you would not come. I waited here, for the day that you would return, for only _you_ would do for what I have in mind. You are… the one."

"… The… one?"

"And yet, lo and behold, the witch girl fulfilled my wishes for me!" He continued, the tone of his voice beginning to rise gradually. "… She brought you to me, Sub-Zero. Not intentionally, of course, but I almost feel guilty about carrying out the plan now, considering what it would mean…"

"What are you talking about…?" Jinx demanded.

"It would mean, my dear… that you have just delivered the one you love to his dark fate."

And without warning, Hellwing opened his toothy mouth. It began… widening, opening up like a snake that is about to swallow it's prey whole. A malevolent glow seemed to come from the back of his throat, and a moment later, fire spewed forth.

Jinx screamed and Bane gasped as the dark sorcerer's fiery breath rushed through the air, taking on the shape of a serpentine, Chinese dragon as it flew. The fiery dragon slithered forth from Von Hellwing's mouth, and wrapped itself around Sub-Zero before he could react, binding him like a massive, demonic snake. It's hot breath caused the knight to shudder and groan…

The dragon, it's back end still protruding from Hellwing's grotesquely stretched, fanged mouth, began to speak… in a warbling, distorted, demonic version of Lord Von Hellwing's own voice.

"_It is time, Sub-Zero! I **WILL** rule all! But to accomplish this, the elements of old must be rejoined in one!"_

Then, the flame dragon reared it's head back and opened it's jaws, displaying glowing, red-hot teeth and a tongue of flames. With a hideous, predatory screech, it lashed out… and plunged its fangs into Sub-Zero's throat.

"**_NO!_**" Jinx shrieked in horror. Reflexively, she charged up a pink hex in her hands, and fired it out in a wave of dark magic, emitting a whirring sound as it soared through the air towards the fire beast that was attacking Sub-Zero.

The hex hit it's burning, scaly body dead on… but the creature just laughed and continued to push it's teeth deeper into Zero's neck.

Zero groaned weakly in pain… it felt like… something was being drained out of him. He suddenly felt hollow, somehow… incomplete…

The monstrosity finished it's ghastly work, and yanked it's razor-sharp fangs out of his neck, causing him to cry out in pain. It dropped him, and he landed on the castle's snowy floor with a clang of armor against ground. He managed to moan weakly.

Jinx immediately scrambled over towards him, sobbing, while Bane stood there, rooted to the spot with fear.

The burning abomination cackled wildly and slithered backwards, writhing back into Hellwing's mouth, which promptly closed and resumed it's normal appearance. He licked his lips with a long, forked tongue that hissed and quivered like the tail of a rattlesnake.

"Mmm… Intriguing."

"Zero!" Jinx knelt down, and stared in horror. "Zero… Oh God, Zero say something, please!"

He groaned and opened his eyes. "Jinx…" He raised a gloved hand and felt his neck. Despite that creature biting him, there were no marks on him whatsoever. It was as though the damage done hadn't been physical, but… something else…

"You… You're going… to pay for that." Zero said through gritted teeth. Sitting up, he held out his hands and prepared to launch an ice beam.

… Nothing happened.

Baffled, Zero tried again, but… still no effect at all.

"My powers…" Zero groaned.

"No, little fool. **_MY_** powers." Lord Von Hellwing sneered, baring his fangs. Then, he held up his right hand and shot a pillar of flames into the air. With his left hand, he did the same… except, not with fire. With ice.

_**It looks like things have gone from bad to worse for both the Titans and Blackfire, as well as Sub-Zero and Jinx. They're going to have to get rolling if they plan to beat either Dr. Myntull or Lord Von Hellwing.**_

_**In the meantime, don't forget to review, and maybe check out my other fic, Moonlight Maelstrom, if you're interested. **_

_**P.S. As you might have noticed, I changed my name from 'Madphantom' to 'Count Le Madphantom'. So if I review your fic, don't get confused by this new name… I just felt like a change, and this one just seemed cool.**_

_**Later…**_

_**--Count Le Madphantom…**_


	20. Chapter Nineteen

_Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I still don't own the Teen Titans. But I will… I WILL. (Long awkward pause)… Sigh… No, not really._

**_Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Nineteen_**

"Guys! Guys, over here!" Smoke called to his friends. "Quickly!"

The others rushed over; they'd already wasted an hour and didn't want to waste any more time… there was no telling what Blackfire was being put through.

"It's here…" The gunman said energetically. "It's here, somewhere at this spot… I remember."

"But… it's just a wall." Raven said slowly.

It was true. Smoke was knelt down at a small corner where two walls met, with absolutely nothing looking out-of-place.

"There's a switch… somewhere nearby." Smoke searched his memory… "It's hidden in the wall somewhere nearby here… we need to find it!"

"Right. Everybody start looking on the walls for anything suspicious." Robin said with a nod.

Thus, everybody began to search as quickly and carefully as they could… but thirty minutes later… still, nothing had been found.

"I don't see anything. Nothing at all…" Cyborg lamented. He shone the light on his shoulder everywhere he could, but saw nothing but the same charred, barren, old wall.

The walls in question were very tall; there were perhaps a hundred feet between the ground and the ceiling… the basement was huge.

"Wait a minute…" Smoke muttered. He remembered something…

He had been in that capsule… about to be transferred to the secret hangar for testing. He remembered a single gunshot sound… and a clang, as if someone had shot the wall… then, there was an entrance suddenly to a rail.

"Cy…"

"Yo."

"Shine that light upwards on the wall, way up there near the ceiling…"

"Uhh… Sure, if you say so."

Cy switched the spotlight to maximum brightness and pointed up near the ceiling.

Whipping out his rifle, Smoke looked slowly and carefully through the scope. Inch by inch, he scanned the ceiling… and there it was.

Barely even visible way up there, it was a small crosshair target. It was on the ceiling, just above the spot where the two walls met to form a corner… that was it; that was the key.

Levering a slug into the rifle chamber, Smoke aimed carefully.

"Guys… cover your ears. This is gonna be loud…" He warned.

They all did as he said, especially Beast Boy who had sensitive hearing and was wary of Smoke's gunshot.

Making sure the center of his scope was aligned with the middle of the target, he squeezed the trigger.

Just as he'd anticipated, a massive gunshot echoed loudly around the dilapidated basement floors as the exploding slug Smoke had fired flew upwards at the ceiling… and a moment later, an explosion like a grenade lit up the huge chamber and spread steam and fumes all over the place.

Smoke reloaded, but kept his eyes on the target. It was still there, undamaged… but after a moment, it glowed briefly and faded back down.

"… It worked."

Sure enough, the walls began… moving. The two walls that formed the corner began swinging away, revealing a huge, rusty platform with a small booth that hung over a huge chasm. There, next to the booth was a rail, propped up by cement columns that stretched down into the black crevice below.

"This is it! Guys, come on!" Smoke said, taking off towards the small booth.

"We found it!" Cheered Beast Boy.

"And now we must find my Sister." Starfire added solemnly.

Smoke was in the small booth now, standing over a small control panel. "Please… please work…" He prayed softly.

He saw a blinking button on the display labeled, "Call Monorail To Station". He jabbed it impatiently with his index finger, hoping to God it still worked…

The screen filled with static for a moment, causing him to curse under his breath… then, it came back with the message, "Monorail en route… Have a nice day."

"**_YES_**!"

"It worked?" Robin asked hopefully.

"Yeah… yeah, it says the monorail's on it's way."

Robin opened his mouth to say something else, but was cut off by a metallic hiss in the distance.

Everyone turned in surprise, looking to the far side of the huge station (most of which consisted of just a massive chasm with a rail over it)… there, at the other end was the dim outline of a tunnel. And in the tunnel were… lights.

Round, white lights shone brightly out in the blackness, growing larger and brighter as they came closer along the track. So, also, did the metallic hisses and gratings grow until they were painfully loud.

Soon enough, a monorail came into view, racing along the track at high speed. It's white paint peeled slightly, and the green stripe down the side was faded, but… other than this, it seemed to be in perfect condition.

Soon, it pulled up and docked near the metal platform with the booth that they were standing on, and the doors opened automatically.

"Let's go…" Robin said simply. Smoke nodded and got on, the others following him.

Once inside, they sat down on the padded seats and the thing started up automatically. It raced back around in a U-Turn motion and went back the way it had come.

The instant they entered the tunnel again; into that inky blackness… they began to get nervous. The only thing they could see was each other's eyes and the large sphere illuminated by the headlights of the monorail.

"I… I think there's supposed to be lights in this tunnel… but the bomb blast must've knocked out the power. This monorail runs on a generator in the hangar, that's why it still works when everything doesn't." Smoke explained.

"I do not like this darkness." Starfire said, balling her knees up to her chest and looking around uncomfortably. Robin, sitting nearby, put an arm around her shoulders. She leaned over and put her head on his shoulder, closing her eyes and sighing contentedly.

"It's not that bad." Raven said with a shrug.

"Well, yeah, but… you're used to hanging around in dark places." Beast Boy said with a laugh. "We're not."

"Still, at least we've got headlights." Raven said bracingly.

"Guys… I hate to say this, but… I'm not joking…" Smoke started. "You might want to catch a nap or something…"

"How can we sleep at a time like this?" Robin demanded.

"All I mean is, it's about an hour's trip to the base and it's getting late…" Smoke said. He sighed heavily. "I want to save Blackfire, but… wishing won't make this thing go any faster."

"We'll get there in time." Cy assured. "I mean… Blackfire's tough. She's not gonna let that guy do anything to her without putting up a fight."

"Cyborg's right." Terra added softly. "Besides… he said himself that he was after you, not her…"

"Yeah… you're right." Smoke nodded. He shuddered suddenly. Terra, whom he was sitting next to noticed the movement and looked over in concern.

"Huh? Is anything wrong?"

He sighed. "I… I think I'm going to go to sleep. You guys wake me up when we get to the hangar." He said slowly.

He reached down and found a lever on the side of the seat, and pulled. It reclined back and he lay back with his hands on his chest.

Smoke really couldn't explain it, but… sleep was one of the times he felt the most calm, the most control. Sleep was like his sanctuary, where nothing could hurt him and he could feel no pain. Back in the base, when the pain, the cruelty, the loneliness… when it all became too much and he felt as though he was about to explode… he'd just go to sleep in that capsule.

Now, with his mind wracked with worry and fear over the one person he'd ever had feelings for… he couldn't take it. So, with a quick prayer that she was all right, he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

* * *

"Smoke… Smoke!"

The gunman felt himself being shook lightly by the shoulder. With a stretch and a quick yawn, his eyes fluttered open and he glanced around in a drowsy daze… until he remembered where he was and what he was doing.

Springing up from his seat, he immediately asked the first thing on his mind.

"Are we there?" He asked urgently.

"No! But… we've got a problem!" Robin said with a panicked look.

"Huh… what?"

Robin grabbed Smoke by the arm abruptly and dragged him to the front car. He stopped and pointed shakily out the windshield.

Straining his eyes, which could see better than the others' in darkness, he managed to make out the rest of the track beyond the limited glow of the headlights… and immediately saw the problem.

On the tracks ahead, there was a massive pile of debris. The earthen roof above the track had a huge chunk missing, and the stone and dirt debris was now covering the track.

"Quick, Smoke! Where are the brakes?" Robin demanded, searching the compartment desperately.

"There are no brakes! It's fully automated!" Smoke answered with a small groan.

"What the Hell kind of monorail doesn't have any emergency brakes?" Robin yelped, smacking his forehead.

"The kind built by the government." Smoke answered grimly with a heavy sigh. "Do the others know? We don't have much time."

"I haven't told them…"

"Well, don't just stand there, go tell them! We may have to jump…"

"**_JUMP_**? Are you crazy?"

At that moment, they were suddenly interrupted by a muffled yawn.

"Hey guys… what's goin' on?"

It was Beast Boy, who'd just walked into the front car. He scratched his arm and yawned again.

With a sigh, Smoke pointed ahead in the darkness. Beast Boy, changing into an owl to see well in the dark, peered out the windshield. After a moment, the owl began hooting panicked and flapping around. It fell to the floor and changed back to Beast Boy.

"The tracks are blocked! We're gonna crash!" He moaned, freaking out.

"There's got to be something…" Smoke strained his mind, trying to think of a way out of this.

Suddenly, Beast Boy became a bit calmer, and a look of realization spread across his face, as though an idea had just dawned on him. "Guys… wait here." He said, right before rushing out and slamming the door shut behind him.

Robin and Smoke stared in confused silence, pretty stressed at the moment and not getting why Beast Boy had rushed out.

A minute later, the door slid quickly back open and Beast Boy stepped in… with Terra right behind him.

It was at that moment, that Robin began to get Beast Boy's drift… Smoke, however, was still just confused.

"What do you think? Can you do it?" Beast Boy asked urgently.

The rocky wreckage on the track was close enough now to be seen in the headlights… not good. Terra looked at it and gulped. "I… I'll try."

Taking a deep breath, she stared hard at the debris that was rapidly approaching. Gritting her teeth and straining with effort, her eyes suddenly flashed yellow, causing Smoke to inhale sharply in surprise.

"Wh...what's she doing?" he asked, puzzled.

"What she does best." Robin said simply.

The rocks on the track were glowing now too, illuminating the entire subterranean tunnel in a golden glimmer. Smoke recognized it as the same gold light that he and Zero had seen when they'd freed Terra.

And then, before he knew it, the rocks were about forty feet in the air, and… wait… the rocks… were floating? Sure enough, they were; levitating, to be more precise, and the entire time shining with that yellow-gold light.

And not a moment too soon, because just as they'd reached the height of their elevation, the monorail zoomed past the exact spot they'd been sitting on and would've crashed were it not for Terra's intervention.

With the stone rubble behind them, Terra gasped and dropped her concentration, allowing the boulders and dirt to tumble back down with an echoing crash, bouncing off the rail and plummeting into the dark below them.

"Yes! Good going, Terra!" Beast Boy cheered, hugging her around the waist. She smiled sheepishly while Robin congratulated her also.

"I… didn't know you could do that…" Smoke said slowly, feeling a little embarrassed about the lack of knowledge he had about his own friend and teammate.

"Terra's a geomancer." Robin explained, while she just blushed and remained silent.

Smoke stared blankly, with his trademark, '_whut-da-Hell-izzat_?' look.

"Uh… She can manipulate the Earth… rocks, dirt, mud, and stuff…" Beast Boy elaborated further.

"Oh, right." Smoke said, snapping his fingers. "I knew that." He lied quickly.

At that moment, Starfire opened the door and floated in. She looked at everybody strangely.

"Is there some sort of problem?" She asked worriedly. "I heard Beast Boy yelling just now…"

"Yeah… what WAS going on?" Cy added, sticking his head into the doorway along with Raven.

"Just a little last-minute roadwork that needed to be done." Robin said with a smile.

"Thankfully, we've got a 117 lb. Human rock-mover here." Smoke said, motioning to Terra.

"Really, it was nothing…" She said softly.

_**About Forty-Seven Minutes Later…**_

Everybody aboard the monorail was suddenly blinded by the flash of lights as they pulled into another station… much like the one they'd come from, except with a large steel wall with black-and-yellow caution stripes painted on the edges and a small door reading. **_"AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY"._**

They exited the parked monorail and approached said door, which slid open automatically as they drew near. They stepped slowly inside, and suddenly felt as though they were on a different planet.

The entire place around them was in movement; nothing stood still. Looking about, they saw turning gears, flashing computer-monitor screens, blinking buttons, pumping pistons, glowing bulbs, and spinning cranks.

The walls were all of shining, polished metal, and the floors were tiled in a black-and-white checkers pattern, like on a chessboard. The ceiling was jet black, but with long lights in rows that kept the entire place lit up brightly.

The sounds echoing around them of operating machinery and humming electronics made things even more overwhelming simply because you were never quite sure if the sounds you heard were the slamming of pistons against mechanisms or the thundering march of hostile O.R.C. soldiers.

The entire place might have been best described as some sort of nightmarish, hi-tech, space-age version of a middle-ages castle.

"Geeze…" Smoke looked around, blinking in disbelief. "I knew the Doctor loved mechanical things, but… this is ridiculous!"

"So this is Myntull's lab, huh?" Cyborg said with an impressed whistle.

They walked on carefully, keeping their eyes peeled for any traps or monsters… and it wasn't long before they came to a fork in the tunnels. It had four different passages; each one looked exactly identical in all respects.

"We should split up." Smoke said suddenly. "We need to find her quickly…"

Robin nodded. "Star, we'll take the first tunnel. B.B and Terra, you take the second, and Cy and Raven will take the third." He looked over to Smoke. "… Can you handle the last one on your own…?"

"Yeah." Smoke said with a nod. "I can handle it." He punched his palm for emphasis.

And so, they parted ways to cover more ground.

Immediately, for the umpteenth time since he'd broken out of the military base… Smoke wished he'd just kept his big mouth shut.

The passageway he was in was extraordinarily creepy… a straight, pitch black tunnel with strange sounds of machinery echoing through the walls… but there was a light at the end of it, so he slowly made his way there.

As he proceeded, he nearly jumped out of his skin when his communicator beeped. He sighed in relief, realizing it was just the communicator, and answered. It was Beast Boy on the other end.

"Smoke! It's a dead end our way… all we found was a bunch of those Orc things!"

"Are you okay?" Smoke asked in concern. "Y'need help?"

"No, we got 'em… but there's no where else to go!"

"Then either Robin and Star or Me have the right passage." Smoke sighed.

At that moment, the communicator beeped again. "Uh… hang on, B.B. Robin's on the other end…"

He switched over to Robin, who was standing over a pile of dead orcs. "Smoke! Bad news… we've hit a dead end! We dodged some traps, and killed those monsters but… there are no more doors."

Smoke nodded. "Beast Boy and Terra hit a dead end, too. That just leaves me and… Raven and Cy."

"No. Just you." Robin corrected. "Raven just contacted me… she and Cy haven't had any better luck; they're pretty lost…"

Smoke paused and sighed. "Look… you guys, meet up with Terra and B.B…. go find Cy and Raven; they don't need to be wandering around lost in this place."

"What about you?"

"Well, since I'm the only one who hasn't hit a dead end yet…" He reached for his revolver. "I'd say I'm on the right track."

"All right. We'll find them. Just… be careful, okay?"

"Right. Smoke, out."

He hung up and placed the small Titan's communicator back in his backpack. Releasing his grip on the revolver, he instead got his shotgun out of the holster and loaded some shells in. With a soft click, he cocked the gun… whatever was beyond this tunnel, he was gonna be ready.

By the time Smoke reached the end of the dark tunnel, he found himself in some sort of strange control room. Numerous screens filled with changing numbers and static encircled the room, and a large control panel with countless buttons, dials, and switches was at the front along with a long window. He looked through, and gasped. Blackfire!

She didn't seem to notice him; her head was turned toward the opposite side of the room looking at a monitor screen that displayed the number, '4: 58'. Four hours and fifty eight minutes left, plenty of time. But what scared him was a pair of needles positioned rather threateningly on either side of her slender neck.

He banged on the window, trying to get her attention. She looked over with a dismal expression, but snapped into joy and cried out when she saw him.

"Smoke! You're alive!"

"Yeah, and so are you!"

"Please… get me out of here…" She groaned, struggling in her bonds. "There must be some kind of control on that panel…"

Smoke searched the panel, and quickly found a large icon on the screen labeled, '**Execution Timer'**. He pressed it.

Two options popped up onscreen… "**Initiate Execution**" and "**Cancel Execution**". He pressed the latter. Blackfire looked extremely relieved at the needles moving away from her… but gasped when they went right back.

Smoke growled in irritation as another message popped up onscreen… "**Password Required**."

It gave him several spaces in which to type the password.

But suddenly, he heard Blackfire scream. He jerked his head upwards, trying to see what was the matter.

"Smoke, hurry up!"

He quickly saw the source of her distress, and cursed. Apparently, choosing to cancel the execution had triggered some sort of mechanism. The timer had just changed itself from four hours to … one minute and thirty seconds!

"_**CRAP**_!"

Smoke immediately began frantically trying to scan his mind for what might be Myntull's password… and then, he noticed it.

A tiny post-it note on the screen, saying…

_'Not-So-Dear Prototype,_

_LAL RYUO SBEA REA EBLGNO OT SU'_

Smoke stared in confusion. Was that some kind of hint…?

"Smoke… please… I don't wanna die..." He heard a sob from the other side of the window. Immediately, his mind snapped to work… and it wasn't long before he realized what the password was. The note was a word-scramble riddle. Myntull left it deliberately, and he knew the answer.

Smoke carefully typed into the monitor, "**_All Your Base Are Belong To Us_**."

The timer stopped, her bonds snapped open, and the needles retracted into the ceiling, eliciting a relieved sigh from Blackfire.

The door to Blackfire's chamber opened up and he ran through and grabbed her in a tight hug. "Thank God you're okay…"

She nuzzled his neck softly, putting her arms around him. "I wouldn't be if it weren't for you."

"Well… I had help." He said with a sheepish smile.

She smiled slyly, running a hand through his spiky hair. "Maybe… but you were the one that got me out of here…"

Slowly, gradually, she opened her mouth and tilted her head up. He stared for a moment, but quickly caught on and leaned down to her as well, enveloping her in a kiss that lasted for what felt like forever, until…

"Smoke!" Robin yelled, running into the room.

"_SISTER_!" Starfire squealed, soaring in after him and grabbing both Smoke and Black in a hug that nearly broke their ribs. This, combined with the fact that their mouths were already busy, almost strangled them.

They broke apart, coughing and gasping for air… simultaneously glad to see their friends, but irritated at the rude interruption.

"Uhh… Guys… could you have, like… waited for about THIRTY MORE SECONDS…?" he growled softly.

"Uhh… Sorry." Robin apologized sheepishly.

"Yeah, Bro…" Cy said, just now coming in with Raven, Beast Boy, and Terra. "We didn't know you two were, ah… in the middle of something."

"A touching reunion. Too bad it won't last." A metallic voice hissed from the other side of the room.

There stood Myntull, as if out of nowhere. With no warning whatsoever, his chest slid open and fired off a large dart of some sort that hit Smoke dead in the chest. And with an airy laugh and a flash of light, he was gone.

Smoke sunk to the ground and groaned. "What the Hell?"

"He's gone!" Beast Boy said, stupefied… more than usual.

"But… how'd he do that?" Terra asked.

"It was like he teleported…" Raven guessed. "Or something…"

"Smoke! Are you okay…?" Blackfire asked, leaning down.

"Yeah… I think so…" He reached to pull the strange dart out, but…

Suddenly, his entire body lit up with about 5,000 Volts of electrical energy. He screamed out loud, but only lasted for a minute before everything went black…

_**Many Hours Later, At The Infirmary In Titan's Tower…**_

Smoke groaned when he woke up. As his vision cleared up, he noticed Blackfire and Robin sitting nearby.

"Glad to see you're awake…" Robin said. "That much electricity… you had us scared. It should've… killed you." He said softly. Blackfire nodded.

"Myntull…" Smoke groaned.

Thinking about how his nemesis had gotten the better of him once again, he suddenly felt rage and anger well up inside him… he held up his fist and clenched tightly. But when he did, something… unexpected, happened.

A crackling, greenish-yellow lightning bolt shot from Smoke's hand and scorched a nearby wall, causing him to gasp in surprise and Robin and Blackfire to literally drop off their chairs with shock. When the smoke cleared, no pun intended, the gunman sat there with a slightly glowing fist and a dumbfounded expression.

"What… the… _Hell_?"

**_Well, it seems like Myntull's little assassination attempt backfired… Well, you know what they say: What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Now, it seems Smoke's got some new powers… electric powers. How's everybody gonna react to this?_**

**_In the meantime, read and review._**

**_--Count Le Madphantom…_**


	21. Chapter Twenty

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans aren't mine in any way at all._

_**Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty**_

"What… what did you do… to me?" Sub-Zero groaned, clutching his aching chest, Jinx kneeling down beside him and Flake-Bane standing to his immediate left.

Von Hellwing let out a sinister chuckle. "I did what I set out to do. If I am to have the capacity to conquer… not just this little island, but also the world…" his eerie yellow eyes flashed and glowed like a pair of headlights. "… Then my powers must be augmented."

"Augmented? You stole them!" Jinx hissed angrily. "Give his powers back!"

"Why? The fool doesn't even know how to use them properly." He said calmly.

"I don't understand…" Bane said, shaking his head slowly. "Why Sub-Zero? Why not somebody else?" He demanded. "Anybody here can manipulate ice. Why not just use someone else, instead of going to all this trouble just to lure him here?"

"Why, the answer is simple…" Hellwing laughed. "… You have a blunt, two-foot long sword on your left. You have a sharpened, polished, five foot claymore on your right… which do you choose?"

Bane blinked, confused by the strange comparison. "Uh… the claymore?"

"Exactly! Why content myself with the mediocre abilities of you poor savages when **_He_**…" he pointed a crooked claw at Zero, "Outmatches you all!"

"That's not true." Sub-Zero said slowly "The king… King Tundra. He's far more—"

"Oh, that's where you're mistaken." The sorcerer replied. "You underestimate yourself, Sub-Zero… though it's perhaps just your humble nature. No, I'm afraid that you surpassed that old fool long ago… you were just too stupid to realize it."

"But… I never…"

"Did you ever fight the king?"

"No! Of course not, I—"

"I rest my point. Had you fought, you would've triumphed easily. You don't seem to realize the incredible power within you…" he paused with a look of quiet disgust. "I was hoping I'd acquire the long lost water-element as well… but it seems that those abilities are too far gone."

"Water…?" Jinx asked with an arched eyebrow.

"What are you babbling about now?" Bane demanded. "You still haven't explained anything!"

Hellwing glanced at them with an expression of mild interest. "I forgot…" He said softly. "You primitives… so foolish, so uneducated, so ignorant… that you don't even remember your own heritage anymore."

"We've been on this island as long as anyone can remember, for generations." Sub-Zero countered. "That's the only heritage I need."

"I suppose I should do you one last favor before I destroy you… to enlighten you of your lost power."

Hellwing chuckled and cast a blast of black magic in his hands, resulting in a cloud of deep-purple and black smoke… when it cleared, a large, dusty book was in his hands.

"There exists, in this world, a number of different civilizations. Yours… mine… the common herd, the mass of worthless cattle with no abilities whatsoever…" he paused "But one of the most mysterious is one, Atlantis."

"You're pissing me off, wizard." Bane snarled. "What the Hell does that have to do with any of this?" He brandished an icy hatchet threateningly.

Hellwing ignored him. "Eons upon eons ago, this island sunk into the sea, where it has remained since. But before that… when it still thrived in the ancient world as a surface island… this book was written." He held the massive tome up for them to see.

He began flipping through the tattered, yellowed pages. "It depicts Atlantean life, events of the day, famous figures…. But… one of the most interesting is a chapter simply titled**, The Banishment**."

"Get to the point." Sub-Zero said wearily.

"The Banishment… tells of a small group of Atlanteans that wished to see the outside world… this was very contradictory to their traditions; they generally kept to themselves. One day, they defied these rules… they went on a journey to other parts of the world, and returned a year later bearing news of other peoples, other lands… but the other Atlanteans were angry… very much so. So angry, in fact, that these… rebels, I suppose they were, were banished. Yes, they were quite literally banished to the ends of the Earth… to the very top of it, in fact."

"Wait… what… what are you trying to say?" Jinx asked, beginning to get curious in spite of her anger at this sorcerer.

"These banished ones were sent to live at the top of the world, at an island so cold, so barren, that nothing could survive there… supposedly. The Atlanteans, however, underestimated their rebellious cousins' adaptiveness. They adapted to their new home… very effectively. Their ancestral power over the waters was now useless… however, it was lost and replaced by something more useful: the power over elemental frost."

"No…" Sub-Zero was beginning to get where he was going. "Are you saying… I'm… we're…?"

"The constant frostbite turned these Atlanteans' skins as pale as death, and turned their hair as white as the snow around it. Their eyes became red with the effort needed to see through billowing clouds of snow and hail. And they became _so_ accustomed to this frigid home, that they would have it no other way…"

He looked over at Bane and Zero with a sneer. "You, my friends, are merely a foul offshoot of the ancient Atlanteans. Atlantis still exists today, but even they do not remember so long ago when this banishment took place. It was lost to history… until I stumbled across this book."

"I knew, from that point on, I wished to find this Atlantis… and to find their long-lost relatives… for I have always had the power necessary to absorb the elements as my own, but have never had a proper host to take them from… until now. And now that I have your powers, I simply need to find the other elements… fire and ice are but two. Once all are in my control, I'll be unstoppable! This world will be mine, and the masses will bow to Lord Von Hellwing!"

The chamber shook with the force of his voice, and he shone momentarily with a dark aura, his fangs bared and eyes blazing. Then, abruptly, his fury abated and he stood there silently and calmly, an eerily cold and polite smile on his sinisterly withered face.

Gritting his teeth in rage, Sub-Zero drew his sword with a metallic hiss. "You may have my powers…" he spat. "But you sure as Hell don't have my sword!"

He leapt up in a sudden lunge and dashed straight at Hellwing… who wasn't moving. Raising his blade above his head, he prepared for a horizontal running-slice that would take Hellwing's bald head right off his wrinkled neck.

Unfortunately, Sub-Zero was so enraged at this point that he did not think his attack through. Hellwing waited until Zero was at close range, about to slash him with Eviglasere… and suddenly brought his index finger and middle finger, pressed close together, up against the underside of Zero's neck, effectively knocking the wind out of him and inhibiting his breathing.

Hellwing laughed and gripped Zero by the neck, choking him. Even while being strangled, Zero attempted to fight back by swinging his blade, but every time it was deflected by a red-robed arm. The dark sorcerer growled, and threw him back against the far wall, where he slid off with a groan. Immediately, Bane was at his side trying to help him up.

Jinx, on the other hand, was livid with anger. She screamed and directed a flurry of glowing hexes at the sorcerer. He just smiled knowingly and held out his long fingers, literally catching the hexes in his hands and absorbing them. After about thirty, Jinx began to get tired and stumbled to her knees… the wizard took advantage and redirected all the absorbed hexes back at her, all at once. She was hit dead in the head and sent flying across the room, thumping against the ice-cold wall like a rag doll and dropping off with a small moan.

"You bastard!"

An ice axe flew at Hellwing at high velocity, nearly chopping off one of his horns, but he ducked to the side in time to avoid that. The hatchet flew spun back through the air to it's thrower, Flake-Bane. He let out a roar and charged the villain with both of his frozen hand-axes drawn, intending to chop him apart… however, the withered old man leapt up into the air with a height that would've put Michael Jordan to shame and came back down with his fists onto the ground. Instantly, a shockwave of flames soared forth from the spot he'd landed in, and knocked Bane to the ground instantly, stunned and badly burnt.

Surveying the three beaten heroes with little interest and slight amusement, Hellwing clapped his hands again, signaling for some more Black Riders. Promptly, three of them emerged from the entranceway.

"Take Sub-Zero to the dungeons. Let him wander in those caverns and die slowly from thirst and starvation… oh, and take his sword so he won't be able to stab himself. And the other? Prepare him for execution tomorrow… beheading at dawn. As for the girl… have her… cleaned up. I may have some, ah… _use_… for her, later."

* * *

Sub-Zero awoke a couple hours later in a daze. His first thoughts, once he'd regained his lucidity, immediately drifted to Jinx and Bane. 

He sat up with a groan, placing a single hand to his forehead and propping himself up with the other. His vision was swirling a bit, but a moment later, it too subsided… and he found himself in a very familiar place…

… The dungeons. The same icy, dark, dilapidated dungeons that Slade and Brother Blood had holed up in a couple of months ago. And now, it seemed, he was here again.

"Hellwing… this is your doing." Zero muttered crossly.

He got up and waited for his eyes to get used to the darkness, the only light source being the occasional iron torch with dim blue flames.

He passed tunnel after frozen tunnel, passing numerous chambers full rusty prison cells with moth-eaten, tattered mattresses and also a few abandoned torture chambers filled with rusted, broken instruments of pain… most of which were covered with what looked like years-old blood stains. For what seemed to be hours, he wandered aimlessly like this.

He cursed his luck. The last time he was here, the only reason he'd been able to find his way out was thanks to Robin's skilled navigating and his uncanny ability to remember the route he'd come by.

Zero, on the other hand, wasn't quite so blessed. For all his fencing skills and extraordinary strength, he had a dismal sense of direction.

He pressed on, always searching for the exit… for the passage that would lead him back to his home, his friends, and his life… but to no avail. Soon, he found himself in the ancient caverns that were situated below the dungeons, interconnected with them via natural tunnels of snow and ice.

The tired knight, aching from his previous battle and smothered by grief, fell down onto the snowy ground with his back propped up to the frozen wall. He stared dully into the tunnels ahead, wondering if he was condemned to lose his life, and probably his sanity down here… wandering for eternity, long after everything that mattered to him was already gone.

A moment passed… and gradually, his mind began to drift, slowly replaying memories from the past…

And exhausted, he slept.

* * *

Sub-Zero was running. 

He was running, he couldn't quite place why… but whatever the reason, it was urgent. He could feel it…

He looked around, and saw smoke, and fire, and ash, and rubble… he smelled the stench of a burning building. He dodged a falling piece of burning rafters from the ceiling, and kept his pace.

Then, he remembered. He remembered everything! His friends, those three criminals that had captured them… he fought them off and freed his new amigos from the slime they'd been trapped in. The two criminals, Gizmo and Mammoth, had escaped with an elderly man on a flying platform… but…

One had been left behind. A girl… even if she was the enemy, he couldn't leave her to die. If he just allowed a trapped person to burn slowly, to suffer a long death… he'd be no better than the lawbreakers his new friends fought.

He searched desperately, to limited effect. But after a couple of minutes…

"_Ohhh…_"

A small moan from the other end of the large shopping mall plaza, now alight with flames, echoed to the young warrior's ears.

He broke into a run and began kicking away pieces of burnt trash, cracked rubble, and broken and scorched debris. Finally, with one last armful of smoldering dust, he unearthed the source of the sound.

Lying there with one hand gripping her leg painfully, eyes closed and hair down from it's usual pigtails, she seemed almost like some kind of fallen angel, plunged unfairly from the heavens to the flames. Her pale gray skin almost reflected the glow of the flickering flames and her slender frame seemed alarmingly fragile.

For a split second, maybe less, her rosy feline eyes fluttered open, and she whimpered something intelligible, gripping her hurt leg with a shaky hand… then, she went limp again, completely unconscious.

Sub-Zero knelt down and checked her pulse… and to his relief, found her to be alive. He grabbed her and ran, cradling her carefully, not wanting to wake the beautiful slumberer.

He heard a small sound… his communicator. Robin was on the other end. They spoke briefly, and The Boy Wonder asked about the third and final foe.

"She… got away." Zero's voice was soft and unsure. There, the conversation was abruptly ended.

And with that, so ended the peace of sleep.

* * *

Sub-Zero snapped back awake for the second time that day… memories of the dream (which, in and of itself, had been real memories) fresh in his mind. 

He suddenly felt refreshed… invigorated, even.

Getting back up, he continued his search, determined to escape this prison and get his powers back once and for all.

_**A Couple Of Hours Later…**_

This place was getting stranger by the minute. So far, Zero remembered passing through the actual old dungeons… then, the subterranean caves… but now, something completely different surrounded him on all sides.

About thirty minutes ago, he'd noticed a strange pattern. Every few feet of ice, there would be a small, deep-sea green brick or a teal-blue brick in the wall. As he walked along, they became more and more numerous. But now, they covered the walls. Bricks, stones, and tiles, all colored in deep blue, tan brown, and sea green…

He felt as though he'd entered some kind of ancient palace. The cracked tile floors and worn walls, complete with collapsing archways and crumbling pillars… it was like something out of a history book, the ruins of some long lost place.

It glimmered slightly, pools of water everywhere, all shining with a surreal blue-green glow. The constant, steady dripping of water off of stalactites into pools of water seemed almost like the ticking of a clock, and water flowed slowly and gracefully through pipes and aqueducts on the walls.

His crimson eyes took the place in curiously. He'd never seen anything like this before…

"What is this… place…?" He mused to himself.

He made his way to the end of the massive chamber and found himself at an ancient altar. All around was ornate, but aged, rectangular pools… the pipes emptied water into them, which drained through what looked like a rusted grating on the floor and drained back into the pipe. They seemed to serve no purpose except decoration.

Many crystals jutted out of the ruined walls, in spiky, shining clusters of emerald, sapphire, onyx, silver… their sheen, combined with the already unearthly glow, almost made the atmosphere of the place unbearable.

He strained his eyes… there, in front of him, was the center of the altar. Upon it was a statue. It was made out of what looked like stone, and was slightly crumbled, but still in surprisingly good shape. It was in the likeness of a woman, robed and winged… an angel, perhaps?

But what really grabbed his attention was… a cup. A goblet, more specifically. The statue held in its stone hand an extravagant golden goblet, encrusted with gems and shaped into a sharp curve.

He walked up and placed a hand on the goblet, and pulled. It was difficult to get out, but once he managed to yank the cup out… something else drifted down from the statue's grasp and dropped onto the old floor.

A book.

Curious, Sub-Zero picked it up and began thumbing through the pages. To his disappointment, many of them were written in strange symbols and pictures. Many had diagrams and illustrations of what looked like… fish.

The last page in the small book… the very last one, before the back cover… was, to his surprise, written in traditional Norblitzian. He was able to make it out, though it was badly blurred and faded.

He read slowly and carefully to himself…

' _The knowledge that we thought to seek,_

_from other lands and foreign soil,_

_has taken from us the love of kin,_

_and made the blood of our elders boil._

_Banished we are, condemned as the wretch,_

_To island cold, and mountains deep,_

_While our hearts are filled with remorse,_

_Our eyes that in eternity weep._

_We shan't give up, we will survive,_

_We will persevere and live,_

_Our brothers and sisters were wrong all along,_

_To them, our enmity we now must give._

_We have changed, we are not the same,_

_We are now one with the frost,_

_But we have endeavored to preserve powers of old,_

_No matter how great is the pain and the cost._

_Should it ever be needed again,_

_A hero will surely rise,_

_To reclaim the powers of old,_

_And receive kinsmen's glorious cries.'_

_Simply drink the draught of old,_

_It's power is eternal._

_With it, is given the power to defeat,_

_The menace of fires infernal._

Sub-Zero wasn't sure what to make of all this… but the phrase, 'menace of fires infernal' was eerily familiar… Hellwing. Did that mean… the power to defeat him was here?

He read the tattered page over again, and noticed the phrase, 'drink the draught'… but what draught? He'd found a cup, but…

In his thoughtful silence, he noticed the sound of flowing water… the aqueducts and pools in the corners and sides of the room.

He looked back and forth from the water to the cup. Could that be what it meant…?

Hesitantly… he looked at the goblet; he strode slowly over to the small pool. With a shaky hand, he placed the cup directly beneath the water spout emptying into the pool… quickly, it filled up.

Taking a deep breath and saying a little prayer (just in case), he murmured "Bottoms up," and swallowed the large goblet full in a single gulp.

As he expected, it was… water. Just water. Admittedly, it was extremely clean, cool, and tasty water… but still, it was merely a glass of water.

Sub-Zero groaned in disappointment… until a sharp pain shot up his gut, and caused him to fall flat on his face, the impact of his chest plate against the worn walkway echoing around these ruins.

Then, as suddenly as it had happened, the pain was gone. Sub-Zero felt hot in the face all of the sudden, probably because of the pain a moment ago.

He reached for the water, intending to splash a bit on himself to cool off… but to his amazement, he didn't even have to touch it.

As though responding to him, the water shot out in a stream and soaked his face, cooling him off. He shook his head and stared comically, not believing what had just happened.

He tested this out again. He stared at the water, and willed with all his might, trying to make it do something… a moment later, a pillar of water foamed upwards. Sub-Zero twisted his hand around in a spinning motion, and the watery column spun around like a typhoon.

Then, the meaning of the strange booklet became clear to him all at once. The ancient outcasts from Atlantis that Hellwing had mentioned briefly… they'd written this, when they first came here. They found themselves changing, adapting… but they didn't want to lose their powers of the sea forever. So, they built this altar and blessed it with the essence of the ocean… the water here was enchanted, and permanently granted one with the ability to manipulate and create water. With this, Hellwing… whose powers stemmed mainly from elemental fire… didn't stand a ghost of a chance.

Smiling, Sub-Zero stood on the altar next to the statue, and willed the water to shoot upwards at high speed. It punched through the cave ceiling for what was probably half a mile, a hole about five feet wide and six feet long. He allowed it to flow back down, and then stood on top and did the same again, riding up the watery geyser like an elevator… up, upwards…. To the castle.

"Hang on Jinx, Flake-Bane… I'm on my way…"

_**Heheheh... Next Chapter: The Final Showdown with Sub-Zero and Hellwing. I'll try to get it up as soon as possible and maybe update my other AU fic as well.**_

_**Read and review!**_

_**--Count Le Madphantom...**_


	22. Chapter TwentyOne

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans do not belong to me, period._

**_Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-One_**

Jinx sat moping and worrying on a little cot in the Harem chamber, a thick blanket draped over her thin frame to try and cover what the rather unflattering outfit she'd been forced to change into did not.

She was being kept with the rest of Von Hellwing's little harem, comprised mostly of Norblitzian girls between the ages of 16 and 20, about fifteen of them in all. They'd been forced into this when Hellwing took over, and it seemed now Jinx had been too.

Immediately, when she'd regained consciousness, she tried to blast her way out with hexes. To her dismay, however, nothing happened… someone, or something, had sealed her powers somehow.

The other girls, many of whom remembered her from the last time she, Zero, and the others had come her, had tried to comfort her and assure her that Sub-Zero couldn't be dead, she was still afraid.

"I'm sure he's on his way back right now, coming to set us free." One of them said bracingly, putting a pale hand on Jinx's shoulder.

Jinx said nothing. She knew that he was probably lost in the dungeons somewhere, but she couldn't help but hope that the other girl was right. Unable to reply, she just pulled the blanket more tightly around herself and shivered violently.

"Zero… don't be dead. Don't be hurt." She mumbled under her breath. "And for God's sake… if you're alive, then hurry up. I don't want that...that… bastard to…" she looked down at what she was wearing which, combined with the fact she'd been thrown into a harem, didn't bode well… she shuddered, and tried to block those thoughts from her mind.

* * *

The knight in question was battling his way through the castle. He was looking for his gear, but to little avail. If he was going to fight Hellwing, he needed his sword… 

"I must be getting close…" He muttered, looking around a corner. A large group of Black Riders was standing next to an armored door with a barred window…

He stepped out from behind the corner and cleared his throat loudly. They looked over and stared dumbly for a moment. Still thinking him powerless, they broke into a run and pulled back their lances, preparing to stab him.

Crouching down, his eyes flashed teal green… and a hissing noise filled the corridor. They stopped and looked around, searching for the source of the sound that was growing steadily louder…

Out of the blue, a literal tidal wave of boiling water splashed over Sub-Zero's back and sprayed the Riders forcefully against the far wall, smashing them to bits.

Sub-Zero ran up to the metal door and yanked… but it was locked, and wouldn't open.

He cursed silently, and banged his fist against the doorway, causing it to shake violently. But then… a small smirk appeared on his face. Steadily, it widened into a full-fledged grin.

Reaching into his belt, he pulled out a silvery lock pick and set to work cracking the lock. It was tough and for a moment, he thought he'd have to find another way in… but after taking a deep breath, pressing his ear to the doorway, and trying one more time… the lock opened with a resonant click.

Laughing in triumph and swinging the door open, he charged inside.

This room was a storage room, usually kept locked for security purposes. His stuff must be in here, somewhere…

After searching through numerous jars and crates without much success, he finally spotted a massive leather sack under a table, tied closed with a rope. He ripped the rope off and pulled it open.

Sure enough, there was his stuff right there. His sword, shield, war hammer… everything. He grabbed them and strapped them on, preparing for a fight.

Forming a sphere of frothing water in his hands and watching it glow and spray dimly, he muttered darkly under his breath. "If it's a fight he wants, it's a fight that he'll get…"

But as he was digging through this stuff, he noticed something else… a smooth, almost silken jet-black material. Curiously, he pulled it out and noticed that it was a dress… with dark bluish-purple frills around the neck-and-chest area and a jagged-edged skirt. Along with this, there was a pair of… striped stockings?

His brain snapped with realization.

"Jinx…!"

He'd recognize these clothes anywhere. Sure enough, when he lifted out the blue-and-black stockings, he found her dark blue high-heeled boots underneath

He stared incredulously. Why were her clothes here? And what was she in now…? He didn't like it.

With a grunt, he heaved himself up and made sure all his gear was on securely. Then, he broke into a run to the top of the keep, where the throne room was located.

* * *

Jinx was scowling and shaking uncontrollably as she was led down a long, cold hall with nothing on but the revealing two-piece harem dress, which rather resembled some kind of strange, ornate bikini with baggy, but sheer, leggings and some leather sandals. 

She was really beginning to get cold now; the Black Rider guards had forced her to take off the blanket. She was still wearing a pair of shackles over her hands, though…

They went on for a long time, turning corner after corner and going up a couple of flights of stairs. With every step, she felt a growing sense of dread and foreboding, as though she was drawing near to something horrible.

Finally, they reached the huge icy doorway to the throne room. They stood still for a moment, and after some silence… the massive doors ground open slowly.

Abruptly, Jinx yelped as the Black Riders shoved her inside and slammed the huge doors behind her before she had time to react.

She laid still for a split second but gasped sharply and leapt to her feet when the cold of the snowy floor cut into her bare stomach. She glared up at the robed figure in the throne, gritting her teeth but shaking with both cold and nervousness.

"W-What do you w-want with me?" She demanded with chattering teeth, rubbing her arms together in an attempt to ward off frostbite. "And why are my powers gone?"

Hellwing sat silently for a moment. Then, he laughed low and loud… though it almost sounded more like a snarl than a laugh.

"Why Jinx, I'm surprised at you…" She jumped; startled that he knew her name somehow. "I would've thought you more intelligent."

She remained silent, but stared in confusion.

"Your shackles are enchanted. They are essentially good luck charms. This, of course, cancels out your hex and curse powers, which draw their magic from misfortune. However… all the good luck in the world isn't going to help you now." His eyes flashed eerily, a pair of glowing yellow orbs in the blackness of his hood.

She backed up, pressing her back fearfully to the wall, trying to ignore the cold that sliced into her like a knife.

With a sudden, puff of reddish smoke, Hellwing was gone… just gone. Jinx gasped and looked around nervously. Behind her, there was nothing… beside her, nothing. But… when she turned back around, he was right there, barely a foot and a half from her face.

She yelped with a start and fell back onto the ground, eyes wide with surprise.

"As for that first question… well, that should've been obvious by now."

With a movement as fast as a striking cobra, his gnarled claws lashed out and grabbed her around the waist. She struggled and kicked him rapidly, with enough force to send an ordinary man flying. He didn't seem to care, though… she would've slapped him, but the shackles rendered her hands useless.

His hood fell back, revealing his twisted face. A long, forked tongue flickered out of from in between his fangs and slithered against her cheek, causing her to whimper and yank her head away with disgust.

"**_DON'T TOUCH ME_**!" The hex mistress shrieked, kneeing him in the gut and jumping away.

He doubled over, winded by her kick, and came back up with a growl a moment later. "You shouldn't do that, my dear. After all…" he paused and smoke rose from his slit nostrils for a moment. "… You wouldn't want me to have to finish off your little friend right away, now would you?"

"Sub-Zero'll come! He'll come for me and you'll be sorry you were ever born!" Jinx yelled angrily, beginning to shake, not only from the cold, but also with suppressed rage.

Hellwing was silent for a moment. But then his tall, robed form seemed to glide over the ground towards her, stopping a few feet away.

"You know… I might be able to arrange for a stay in the prison tower for him…" He said with a tone of mock politeness, as if he was talking about the weather. "… As opposed to a long, slow, excruciating death wandering the dungeons."

He flared with fire for a moment, hissing with wicked glee. "If you can manage to give me… the proper persuasion." He brought up a long finger and barely ran it's long, ugly nail against the underside of her neck. She shook her head violently and flinched away.

"Just one word… that's all it takes…" The sorcerer rumbled. "What's your answer…?"

There was a split moment of deathly silence that suggested Jinx was unsure of how to answer. Then, when she opened her mouth to speak…

… She spit in his face.

"You go to Hell… I belong to one, and one only." She muttered venomously, in a cutting tone that put Hellwing's own malevolent voice to shame.

With a snarl, he knocked her backwards several feet onto the floor. She moaned and shivered, trying to limited effect to get up.

Hellwing materialized a bright, crackling sphere of intense flames that let of fumes of smoke and steam and distorted the air around it with sheer heat. His evil gaze bore into her and his fanged mouth was pulled into a feral roar. "So be it!"

He flung the fireball at her at high velocity, and Jinx cowered down, preparing for the end of it all.

But it never came.

Instead… a loud, spraying, watery noise, rather like the roar of an erupting geyser, was accompanied by the airy hiss of extinguished flames. Jinx could've sworn that… she felt droplets of warm water spray onto her face. Stunned, she was unable to open her eyes for fear… until…

"You… don't… **EVER**… touch her." An icy from the other side of the room.

Instantly, Jinx's eyes snapped open. Hoping her ears were right, she gulped and turned her head to the side to look at the doorway.

There, amidst a pile of slain Black Riders, stood a figure of snowy white tresses, white baggy robe-clothes and a blue crystalline chestplate, tall teal boots, a silvery necklace shaped like a snowflake… sword and shield brandished, and his long blue cape with furry white trim concealing a massive war hammer strapped to his muscular back.

There was no mistaking him.

"Sub-Zero…" Jinx half squealed, half sobbed.

"**_IMPOSSIBLE_**!" Hellwing bellowed.

"Oh, it's possible." Zero said calmly. And with no further warning, he hurled his shield, Snevakt, like an icy discus. It sailed through the air at an alarming rate and struck Hellwing with enough power to send him flying and thumping against the throne.

Sub-Zero caught it as it sailed back, and put it back on his arm. He charged with sword drawn.

Hellwing glowered and rose up again. He ran at the charging knight with his claws outstretched.

Sub-Zero, however, had a plan this time.

When they were just about to collide and clash blows, Sub-Zero leapt over him and shoved his sword through Hellwing's back, the tip of it protruding bloodily from the wizard's back.

Hellwing howled in pain and started yanking on the sword, trying to pull it out. Zero, still behind him, whipped his hammer, Hiverzbyrde, off his back and struck the hilt of Eviglasere. The force of the blow caused the sword to pierce the rest of the way through Hellwing and go flying out of his chest, sticking into a nearby wall.

Still stunned, Hellwing was knocked a good twenty feet away by a powerful, spinning jump-kick by Sub-Zero. The knight dashed over and grabbed his sword, yanking it from the wall and putting away his War hammer.

Hellwing, struggling to get up from the flurry of attacks Sub-Zero had delivered, was unable to dodge Zero's next upwards sword stroke. With a ripping and tearing noise, the icy blade slashed off both Hellwing's golden horns.

Sub-Zero caught the horns in his gloved hands, and whipped them around quickly so that the points of them were facing downwards. Then, holding them aloft like a pair of daggers, he jammed them down into Hellwing's skull and punched him backwards.

Hellwing lay there nearly dead, as Sub-Zero strode up and brandished his sword. Kneeling on one knee, Sub-Zero raised his blade.

"Sorry, wizard… but Hell… has just frozen over."

And with that, he shoved the sword into Hellwing's chest straight through his heart and into the floor below. He kept it there for a moment, then yanked it back out fiercely.

Even this, though, didn't seem to kill Hellwing. Despite being heavily injured, the sorcerer rose back up yet again and roared with fiery hatred. He blasted a shot of black magic out suddenly that knocked Sub-Zero back.

Scrambling to his feet, Sub-Zero faced off with Hellwing… eye-to-eye.

They stood there silently for a moment… no sound, no movement, and no feeling.

Then, simultaneously, they launched attacks at each other. Hellwing launched a pillar of Hellish flames that would've incinerated most anything instantly. Sub-Zero fired off a deluge of frothing, foaming water that sprayed forth with enough force to knock it's way through concrete.

The elements met, and there was a massive flash of light!

Nearly blinded, Jinx found herself hesitant to open her eyes. But when she finally did, she saw it.

Sub-Zero was standing victoriously… and Hellwing was on the a great distance away, soaking wet.

He lay there as though dead… and then… started to smoke.

Twitching erratically, he began to smoke and steam before their eyes. His already wrinkled skin began to rapidly grow more taut and dry, as though he was mummifying in fast motion. With a massive, thunderous roar, he crumbled… crumbled into a pile of ash in the middle of the room. A light shone forth from the ash, blue shafts of light surrounded by an ethereal white sheen... then, it rushed into Zero and caused him to stumble back.

Looked around, confused as to what just happened. Then, he realized... he held out his hand, and formed a ball of ice. In the other hand, he formed an orb of water. His ice powers were back! And he'd also retained his water powers, too.

The sorcerer of black magic and Hellfire was finally vanquished… for good.

Sub-Zero immediately sheathed his blade and ran over to Jinx, falling to his knees next to her. She moved to embrace him, but remembered that her hands were still shackled. He grabbed the chain between them, and with a mighty grunt, snapped it in his hands.

She smiled and grabbed him in a hug… but was alarmed a moment later when she found that wet droplets were dripping onto her head. Was he… crying?

She looked up, and sure enough he was trying to contain tears.

"Zero, what's wrong?" She asked urgently.

"J-Jinx…" He stammered. "I… please, I'm sorry… If I'd have gotten here earlier…" He paused and shook his head. "Oh my God… did he hurt you?"

She shook her head, pink pigtails waving slightly. "No. You got here in time to prevent that, thank God." With that, she leaned up and kissed him on the lips. They remained like that for at least a minute and a half before breaking apart for air…

… and then, they did the same thing again.

This time, Jinx broke away and caressed his cheek. "Zero… don't worry. It's over now; we can go home."

He nodded and regained his composure. "I, er… found your clothes in the storage room. C'mon, I'll take you there. Then, we can go rescue Flake-Bane."

* * *

Flake-Bane was stunned. He had been held onto a wooden chopping-block, about to be beheaded by an axe-wielding Black Rider. But just as the ash golem had raised the axe… it had just disappeared. So had the ones holding him down, and all the others… 

Did that mean that Sub-Zero had done it? Had he defeated Lord Von Hellwing?

"Bless you Sub-Zero…" He muttered under his breath, and took off towards the prison tower. While he'd been held prisoner, he'd met up with the King. King Tundra was alive, along with all the other knights! They were prisoners, but now they could be freed… all thanks to Zero.

**_Three Hours and Eleven Minutes Later…_**

The entire populace of Norblitz was gathered cheering, throwing confetti, and waving banners at its icy coastline, gathered to bid bon voyage to Sub-Zero and Jinx as they departed back for Jump City.

Sub-Zero accepted the King and the people's sincerest thanks. But the biggest shock was when several people, including the King himself, asked Sub-Zero if he was interested in the idea of staying and becoming the king himself.

The knight stared incredulously for a moment. And when Flake-Bane said jokingly, "Think of it, mate… Jinx could be a Queen, y'know."…

Sub-Zero just smiled and said: "She already is." Then, he kissed her again on the forehead and she nuzzled into his neck, now back into her own clothes.

So, with a fond farewell, they departed on the Fryse Wyrm to go home again.

And somewhere in the whereabouts of the sea, Sub-Zero asked hesitantly…

"Jinx… you, ah… you didn't think to keep that Harem outfit, did you?"

"Um… No…"

He sighed heavily.

"Why?"

"Oh, just… just wondering…"

'Crap.' He pouted mentally.

**_Well, Lord Von Hellwing is dead; Sub-Zero and Jinx are on their way home. Next chapter, we'll find out how the Titans are reacting to Smoke's new power._**

**_Read And Review! The more reviews, the better!_**

**_--Count Le Madphantom…_**


	23. Chapter TwentyTwo

_Disclaimer:0i d0 N0t pWn Th3 T33N TiTnZ!1! (Translation: I do not own the Teen Titans.)_

**_Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-Two_**

A little over a week had passed since Myntull had lured the Titans to his underground lair and attempted to kill Smoke with a powerful electric shock, inadvertently bestowing him with a new ability. Somehow, he'd appeared out of nowhere and disappeared into thin air after he'd attacked Smoke… apparently, he was becoming more powerful.

This, coupled with the fact that he hadn't been heard from in over a week, made our heroes extremely nervous. Smoke, still getting used to his newly endowed abilities, was particularly on edge.

You can imagine, therefore, their shock and nervousness when a strange signal appeared on one of Cyborg's radars one unassuming morning.

He was in the middle of tuning it up and performing a couple upgrades, when it had suddenly began bleeping wildly as a small flashing dot appeared on its screen. The dot had a small label nearby with an arrow pointing from the label to the dot.

It read: '_Unknown Object… about 241 feet in length… estimated weight of 1, 573 tons… traveling south-southeast at roughly 93 knots_.'

The dot itself was situated out in the ocean adjoining the Jump City Bay that, in turn, was adjoined to the large body of water upon which the Titans Tower's island was located.

Whatever this thing was, it was huge… and coming straight at them at an alarming speed.

Cyborg was so startled at this realization that he jerked up off the ground he'd been laying on making adjustments… and struck it head on the bottom of the radar system with a loud metal clank.

Groaning and rubbing his head, he jogged out of the room, slammed the door, and started down to Robin's room.

He ran down a couple floors, through a long corridor, and eventually found the large door bearing the name, '**Robin'**. He slumped over, breathing hard from the run down here.

He raised his metal fist and knocked softly but insistently on the door. The sound of soft, muffled footsteps ensued, and Robin opened the door a moment later. He had a wooden Bo staff propped up against his right shoulder and was dressed in a white martial-arts robe and sandals. Apparently, he'd been in the middle of training.

Before Robin could even ask what was the matter, Cyborg spoke in an agitated voice.

"Robin! Come here, quick! You're gonna want to see this…"

**_Seventeen Minutes Later, On The Roof Of Titan's Tower…_**

"How could something that big possibly move so fast?" Robin asked, scanning the horizon with a pair of binoculars.

"I don't know." Cyborg responded with a worried gaze over the roof at the sea. "But whatever it is, it's definitely on its way here."

The others, meanwhile, were trying to figure out what could be so large. Smoke sat idly on a corner of the roof, watching mildly interestedly his palms crackle with electricity. He sighed heavily. "Guys, it's probably not such a big deal, I mean… it's probably just a whale or something…"

"A whale swimming that fast?" Raven asked sharply. "That's not even possible."

Smoke just shrugged and went back to observing his hands while he practiced generating electricity.

"Maybe the radar just glitched or something?" Blackfire asked.

Cyborg shook his head vehemently. "No way! I was making tune ups on it just now… and I can tell you for a fact that it was in perfect working order."

Terra, Starfire, and Beast Boy were all stumped. Obviously though, everybody on the roof was wondering the same thing… was this, too, Myntull's doing? After all he'd done so far, it really didn't seem so unlikely that he'd be able to build a huge submarine or ship of some kind.

And if Myntull was behind this, they were in trouble… big trouble.

"I see something!" Robin hissed suddenly, getting everybody's attention. Everyone crowded around, straining their eyes to see in the distance.

"What is it?" Starfire asked.

"I don't know… but… it's massive…"

Robin turned a small knob on the side of the binoculars, magnifying the image so that he could see the rapidly approaching shape with more clarity.

Sure enough, something huge… a dark, indistinct blot on the horizon… was coming straight at the Tower. As it gradually became larger and larger, it also became clearer. And that's when Robin managed to make out a key feature of the silhouette… sails. White, billowing sails.

And then, the answer hit him like a bag of bricks in the forehead. After a moment of stunned silence, he burst into relieved laughter and dropped the binoculars. Everybody looked at him like he'd gone crazy.

"Uh… Dude… what's wrong with _him_?" Beast Boy leaned over and whispered to Terra, who could only shrug and stare concernedly in response.

Robin, taking a few deep breaths and managing to stop laughing, explained. "Guys… This isn't a threat to us. In fact, it looks like the cavalry's here."

_**A While Later…**_

Sub-Zero was a bit concerned to find the interior of Titan's Tower dark and silent. All the lights were turned off, no noise came from its halls, and there was absolutely no sign whatsoever of life.

As soon as he and Jinx stepped cautiously through the front door, they'd both sensed that something was amiss…

"… Where… _is_ everybody…?" Jinx wondered aloud.

Sub-Zero looked around at the dark surroundings and sighed. "I guess they're not home… must be out stopping a crime or something…"

The knight, still carrying a massive armload of Jinx's luggage, started to make his way to her room to put her stuff there for her; she, meanwhile, decided to go to the living room and watch some T.V. whilst waiting for them to return.

… Biggest mistake she'd made in a while.

The moment Jinx stepped through the doorway into the seemingly deserted Titan's Tower living room, she was immediately blinded by a bright flash of color as all the lights suddenly flashed back on at once, along with… _confetti_? This followed quickly by the shout of "_SURPRISE_!"…

She screamed loudly, badly startled by all this, and fell backwards only to land on her back staring up at a huge makeshift banner reading, "**WELCOME BACK**!"

Jinx blinked a few times before her rattled brain began to comprehend what had just happened… and very quickly, she let off a soft groan of relief. Spending a while almost getting killed by a fiery tempered dark sorcerer can make one rather jumpy indeed.

After a moment of awkward silence, a few murmurs began to emerge.

"Whoa, dude… is she okay?"

"Perhaps such a sudden greeting was not a wise idea…"

"I hope she didn't have a heart attack… Zero'd kill us…"

"Speaking of which, where _is_ Zero?"

With a slight twitch of her left eye, Jinx sat up and stared irritably at her friends, most of whom were staring back sheepishly at her holding noisemakers and other party favors.

"Hello to you, too…" She grumbled wearily, before thumping down onto her back and trying to let her heart rate slow back to normal.

Sub-Zero, having heard Jinx scream, came running into the room with sword drawn and looking absolutely murderous… until he saw the banner, confetti, and startled Titans, at which point he put two and two together and sighed heavily, sheathing his sword and helping Jinx to her feet.

"So… how'd everything go?" Smoke asked with a slight grin.

"Yeah! I don't suppose you brought us any souvenirs?" Beast Boy said jokingly.

For a moment, Sub-Zero looked slightly amused and stood motionless. But after a moment, his smile widened as he walked over and sat down on the couch.

"Actually…" He propped his hands behind his head and laid back on the couch. "… I did."

Then, with no warning whatsoever, he materialized a large, glowing, greenish bubble in his hand and hurled it straight at B.B.'s face, shouting: "Think fast!"

Beast Boy of course, who had a difficult time just thinking in the first place, just stood there dumbstruck. The bubble hit him dead on, and the next thing anybody knew, Beast Boy was dripping water onto the floor.

Sub-Zero and Jinx tried to contain laughter, but couldn't. Sub-Zero clapped a hand to his forehead and fell to the ground howling with laughter, while Jinx was practically in tears she was laughing so hard.

Everyone else, meanwhile, just stared silently at the soaking wet shape-shifter standing in front of them, who seemed to be the most surprised of all. Without a word, he changed into a large green dog and shook himself dry, slinging water all over everybody else and transforming back to himself again a moment later.

"Dude…" He managed to say. "How… how did you… **DO** that?"

Sub-Zero, after taking a few deep breaths and regaining his composure, sighed and began to explain everything that had happened since they left…

_**One Hour Later…**_

Robin blinked a couple times and stared blankly, masked eyes wide and confused. "… Uh… You're kidding right?"

"He's just yankin' our chain." Cyborg said with a grin.

"If I was yankin' your chain…" Zero began solemnly. Then, he raised a hand and materialized a small geyser of water in his palm. "… Could I do that?"

"It's all true!" Jinx insisted with a slight scowl. "If you don't believe us, that's tough; We both know it's true, though."

"Wait…" Raven said with a look of realization on her face. She suddenly strode up to Jinx. "Jinx… hold still…"

On the contrary, Jinx backed away hesitantly, looking worried. "Wh… what are you going to do…?"

"I'm going to read your memory." Raven said casually, stretching a hand towards Jinx's forehead… until said witch drew back fearfully again. Raven sighed impatiently. "Look, it's not going to hurt… _really_. Just hold still…"

She eyed Raven's hand warily one more time, but finally closed her eyes and held still, taking a deep breath.

Raven touched a hand to Jinx's forehead, pressing it there firmly. Raven closed her eyes and, a moment later, began to glow faintly with dark energy. Jinx shivered once, but after that she stood dead still, like a statue. Raven wasn't moving either, staying completely motionless.

In her mind's eye, Raven was being hit with a rush of memory and information all at once…

… The sight of whales leaping in and out of the water on a cloudy, overcast day…

…Climbing the ladder up to the top deck of Sub-Zero's ship and looking over the railing of the prow…

… A barren wasteland of black ash, lava pits, geysers of flame, and clouds of smoke…

… An alarming-looking figure draped in a crimson robe, with blazing yellow eyes and gnarled claws…

… Screaming and watching Zero getting sucked dry of powers by the sorcerer…

… And Sub-Zero's reappearance, followed by Lord Von Hellwing's defeat…

… The peaceful trip back to Jump City and Titan's Tower…

That was when Raven gasped and opened her eyes, clutching her own head now and stumbling away from Jinx. She looked as though something had stunned her; it was probably from the sheer amount of memories that she'd read at one time.

Thankfully, Cyborg caught her in time to prevent her from falling to the ground. She managed to stand up on her own a moment later. Jinx, on the other hand, opened her eyes and blinked dazedly, as if she'd just woken up. She swayed on the spot a couple of times, concerning Zero, but she didn't fall.

"They were telling the truth…" Raven said softly, nodding. "Everything they said was absolutely true. I just saw Hellwing myself… in Jinx's memories."

"I told you!" Jinx hissed, rubbing her head and still looking just slightly dazed from Raven's memory-reading.

"You're sure you're okay…?" Zero asked tentatively, still ready to catch her in case she fell.

"I'm fine…" Jinx mumbled. She was beginning to recover from the dizziness, and wasn't wobbling anymore.

There was an uneasy silence after all this…

"You know…" Robin spoke up. "There's something we haven't told you guys about, either…"

"What's that?" Zero asked, eyes widening in surprise.

At first, Robin said nothing at all. But then, he smirked lightly and turned to Smoke, who was standing behind Blackfire and yawning.

"Hey, Smoke… why don't you, ah… welcome Zero back."

The gunman blinked in confusion. Robin, who still had his back to Zero, winked knowingly… and Smoke began to catch on.

Smiling genially, he strode over to Zero, boots clicking against the floor. Once he'd closed the gap between them, he held out his hand for a handshake and said: "Nice to have you back, buddy…" However, there was something in his tone of voice that suggested he was hiding something.

Sub-Zero, gullible as he was, just smiled genially and took his hand. He was about to thank Smoke when…

_Bzzap_! "**YOWCH**!"

There was a bright flash of light and a few yellowish-green sparks as Smoke zapped Zero's gloved hand with a small jolt of electricity, causing him to yank his hand back and yelp in surprise.

This time, it was Smoke's turn to burst into laughter, Robin and Blackfire joining him after a moment. Everyone else just stared and sighed with anime-style sweatdrops. Sub-Zero was frantically blowing on his hand and Jinx just glared daggers at Smoke.

"Uh… Guess it's time I do some explainin', too…" Smoke said, stifling another guffaw.

For the next twenty minutes or so, the Titans filled Zero and Jinx in on everything that had gone on since they'd left.

By the time they'd finished all the explanations, they couldn't decide which was more improbable. A reanimated madman's brain with the body of a mechanical one-unit army… Or a dark, demonic sorcerer with a fiery temper and an unholy lust for power, among other things…

"Myntull…" Zero repeated softly. "… And you haven't heard from this thing in how long?"

"He hasn't made a move since he tried to off Smoke." Cyborg said with a shrug.

"Either he thinks he killed Smoke…" Beast Boy began. "… Or he's lying low."

"I know one thing: If he shows his ugly head again, he's dead." Blackfire snarled. "I owe that thing… big time."

"As do I… there's a chainsaw blade and a bullet with that freak's name on it." Smoke said darkly, his spiky hair crackling briefly with sparks and light.

"Well… look at it this way…" Terra said with a grin. "It's ten to one now. He doesn't stand a chance."

"True… but still, we can't underestimate him. He's heavily armed, not to mention armored… and as Smoke said: He's unbelievably intelligent. And getting more so very rapidly." Raven added pensively.

"That's fine. I've got some new things to teach him." Robin said, twirling his Bo staff.

"And any enemy of yours, is an enemy of mine." Jinx hissed.

_**The Next Day…**_

Smoke was in his room lying on his couch, watching a World War 2 documentary on T.V. Even this, however, couldn't hold his attention span for long.

Before the show was even half over, his eyelids began to get heavy and his vision began to blur. In a matter of minutes, he'd dropped the bowl of beef jerky he'd been eating and was snoring loudly.

Until… a sudden, loud knocking on the door jolted him forcibly from his sleep.

He jerked awake with a slight start, but yawned and switched the T.V. off to go see who it was.

He strode over to the doorway and opened it up.

There was nobody there…

The gunman looked around in confusion, and became slightly perturbed, thinking that this was yet another of Beast Boy's oh-so-clever practical jokes: Knock on the door and run away giggling like a giddy girl.

But that was only until he saw it: a box.

There, at his feet, somebody had left a small cardboard box with a small tag attatched, reading: 'To Be Delivered To: Smoke's Quarters, Titan's Tower, Jump City'.

"… What… the Hell?"

Curious, he bent over and picked up the package, inspecting it. It was fairly light…

Looking around to make sure nobody was around, he ducked back into his room and closed the door, locking it.

Once inside, he grabbed a large buck-knife out of one of his bench drawers. Carefully he cut the tape sealing the small package closed and opened it up. He gasped…

There, along with a bunch of cotton to provide cushioning, was a small walkie-talkie looking device and a letter.

With a shaking hand, he opened up the envelope and took out the paper within. It was written in an oddly jagged, yet neat, cursive hand in red ink.

'_We have a common enemy. Contact me…'_

And that was all it said… very short and to-the-point.

Smoke looked back and forth from the letter to the device and finally realized what the strange note meant.

Picking up the small radio thingamajig, he flipped a small switch on the side and spoke hesitantly into the receiver. "… Uh… H-hello…?"

For a moment, there was only static in response. But then…

"Hello Smoke. I must say, after hearing so much of you, it's a pleasure to speak to you one-on-one." The voice on the other end was male, very deep and soft. It carried a formal, business-like tone but… there was something oddly cold and venomous about it.

"… How do you know me…? And who are you?"

"Patience, my pyromaniacal friend. I've contacted you… because I have a business proposition… We share an enemy. And working together… we can, ah… _take care of him_. Once and for all."

A long pause. "… Myntull…?"

"Precisely. He has recently stolen some of my technology and has caused me quite a bit of grief. You are one of the few that hate him as much as I… and one of the few whom I can respect. You want to kill him? I can give you the information… I can give you the weaponry… I can give you the ammunition. As a matter of fact, I can give you everything you need… providing, of course, that you keep your end of the bargain."

"My end?"

"Do not tell your friends about any of this. Do not ask for my identity. And most importantly… remember who's in charge."

"… What?"

"If you are interested… contact me again in two hours. I look forward to working with you…"

And with that, the communicator shut off.

_**Well, things are getting… weird. There's some weirdo that says he can help Smoke kill Myntull… but he has to keep it a secret from his friends. Can Smoke trust this guy? Will he be willing to keep secrets from the people he trusts the most? And who is this nameless voice on the other end of the receiver?**_

_**Read and Review…**_

**_--Count Le Madphantom…_**


	24. Chapter TwentyThree

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans. I do get tired of saying this, and I'm sure you get tired of reading it… but, alas, 'tis a necessary evil; I don't want to get my ass sued off._

_**Gunsmoke and Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-Three**_

Smoke paced agitatedly in his room and glanced warily at the small digital clock on his workbench.

Five minutes…

That was all he had. Five minutes, to make a decision that could've taken weeks to make.

If he contacted this… this _guy_… then he could finally have what he'd yearned for so long: A chance to take down Myntull, thus making sure he could never hurt anyone again.

But… was it worth keeping secrets like this? What if his friends found out? What would they say? … What… what would Blackfire say…?

He plopped down on his couch, took one look at the clock again and groaned, placing his head in his hands. This wasn't going to be easy… at all.

When the time came, two hours from the time he'd heard the knock at his door… he forced himself to make a split-second decision. One he hoped he wouldn't regret.

He picked up the small radio and switched it on again. "… Anybody there?"

There was a good thirty seconds or so of dead silence.

"… Ready to accept my offer, Smoke?"

"… Yeah. You tell me where Myntull is and how I can kill 'im…" Smoke's gaze became cold and cutting. "… And I'll do what you want."

"… Good."

Out of nowhere, a small light flashed on the radio and the world suddenly seemed to be a swirl of colors and shapes before Smoke's sight. There was a bright flash, and Smoke covered his eyes.

When the brightness died down, Smoke opened his eyes and gasped.

He wasn't in Titan's Tower anymore…

He was on a long metal bridge in what looked like the inside of some dark factory. All around him, massive cogs and gears turned in slow, steady circles and thick, rusty pipes jutted out from grungy black walls, spewing off thick clouds of hot steam.

Gradually, Smoke took a few steps forward. The sound of the metal bridge groaning under his weight wasn't comforting… and looking below, he saw nothing but inky blackness…

Eventually, he came to the end of the bridge and entered a metal doorway with a jagged, orange-and-black 'S' logo emblazoned on it in faded, chipped paint. It slid smoothly and noiselessly open, leading him into a small room.

There was nothing in here except a window overlooking the black nothingness below and gigantic machinery, another doorway leading out, and… a locker. An orange locker on the far wall…

The communicator crackled and fuzzed back to life for a brief moment. "Have a look, Smoke. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised…" Then, it went silent again.

Cautiously, Smoke strode over and opened up the door on the locker. He stared wide-eyed and slack-jawed, gasping loudly.

A set of clothes…

Getting the idea, Smoke looked around and sighed. "Well… If this guy's gonna help me out… I guess I gotta do what he wants, like it or not."

A few minutes later, Smoke had changed into the clothes inside the locker and was viewing himself in a mirror on the locker's interior.

The jet-black shirt was made out of a shiny, smooth latex-material and produced a bright sheen when the light hit it, despite its dark black color. On the front area, the chest, a pair of ammo-belts were strapped onto him in such a way that they formed an '**X'** shape. The first was filled with rifle bullets, while the second's slots held shotgun shells.

The arms of the shirt had black-leather bracelets around his wrists with silvery studs. A pair of golden chains wrapped around either arm came up to his shoulders and attached to a pair of armored shoulder-pads shaped like golden skulls with red, ruby eyes and silvery fang teeth with tusks.

His hands were clad in green gloves, each with a set of brass knuckles on the fingers. The fingers of the gloves sported long, steel nails that came out over his fingers like claws.

The pants were made out of the same shining, black-as-night latex-like stuff as the shirt and had a pair of black-leather bands around his knees, each with a single, golden spike on the front. The belt on the pants was gray, and held numerous pockets and satchels.

His feet displayed a pair of green combat boots, with steel toes and red laces. A chain was wrapped around the heel of each and they both had a set of cowboy-style spurs on the heel, with small razor-disks.

On the upper part of the shirt, on either side of his neck, were long strips of golden metal atop his shoulders. Long, cruelly jagged, silver spikes rose op from them, giving him a spiny appearance.

He now wore a pair of black sunshades and a red bandanna with a spiky gray-rubber choker around his neck, and instead of his old camouflage backpack, he now wore one of an orange material. He'd transferred all of his old pack's contents into this new pack, and had also packed his other suit of clothes down into it as well.

… Although Smoke was not at all comfortable with the situation, he had to admit… this new suit was pretty badass. He smirked as he looked into the mirror. "Heh… I hope my host realizes I'm gonna be keepin' these…"

Smoke jumped slightly as the door opposite the one he'd come in from suddenly slid open unbidden. He stepped through hesitantly and it closed back again behind him.

He was now in a large chamber with grating-covered large air vents on the ceiling and black walls with a silvery floor.

His radio came back on, and the sinister voice filled him in. "Now, you'll get a chance to break in your new uniform. This little room is a test of reflexes and skill… if you're going to be working with me; you've got to be the best. Get through this, and I'll make sure you bring back Myntull's brain on a silver platter."

That was all Smoke needed to hear. "A test, huh? … Okay then. Do your worst."

For a long moment, nothing seemed to happen at all. Just a dark silence that filled the room was all there was. But then, out of nowhere, the metal gratings on the big air vents were knocked down out of their hinges and they clanged against the floor with a metallic thump.

A moment later, bizarre creatures began leaping down from the air vents in droves. They seemed to be humanoid, but wearing jet-black full-body-suits with orange circles on the face, framing pairs of pure-white eyes. Their black suits were covered by plates of silvery armor and they each carried a strange handgun of some sort.

Smoke, of course, didn't realize it but these were Slade's robotic commandos.

"What in the name of…?"

Smoke didn't have time to finish his sentence. The bots fired off a salvo of spiral-shaped red laser beams.

Smoke ducked under this attack and rolled on the ground behind a large turning gear for cover. He reached down and pulled a revolver out of his holster. Peeking around the edge of the huge gear, he took quick aim and started fanning the hammer.

(A/N: For anybody that's not quite sure what I mean by 'fanning the hammer', it's just a term for when one holds down the trigger on the revolver and starts quickly hitting the hammer on the back of the revolver, resulting in extremely rapid fire.)

A quick six-bullet combo put down one of the creatures and blew off a chunk of its right shoulder, exposing glowing and sparking circuitry.

"So… these guys are mechanical!" Smoke realized aloud.

Reloading quickly, he holstered his revolver and reached for his chainsaw. He yanked the cranking cord with gusto, listening to the saw rev up and sputter to life. With a loud yell, he dashed around from behind the gear and into the fray.

He leapt over three laser beams and came down with a vertical swing, sawing a sladebot in half in a shower of sparks. He whipped the saw around horizontally and decapitated four more with one broad swing.

A bot made a lunge for him, but was foiled when Smoke sliced it's arms off and stabbed it through the chest before kicking it off the whirring chainsaw blade with his boot.

A trio attempted to pin him against the wall, but he loosed an angry scream and spun around in a fast circle, swinging his chainsaw blade with the flat end out. He broadsided the robots and sent them flying into a gear, where they were caught up in the mechanisms and ground up into a heap of smoldering garbage.

The bots, becoming increasingly wary of Smoke, backed away while aiming their pistols threateningly.

Smoke drew his shotgun in the hand opposite his chainsaw and brandished it, cocking it with a metallic click. "Come on! Who wants some more of me?" And with that, he fired off a shot and blew the head off one of the robot's shoulders, provoking the rest into frenzy.

They charged at an alarming speed, firing off their laser pistols the whole time. Smoke ducked and rolled and sidestepped every shot and continued squeezing off shotgun shells like there was no tomorrow.

The robots exploded into debris, rent to shreds by needle-fire from the gunner's dart-filled shotgun shells. With each thunderous gunshot, two or three bots froze and sunk despairingly to the ground before bursting into flame… some just exploded outright, nothing at all left of them. However…

For every bot he destroyed, five or six more seemed to come from the air vents in the ceiling… numbers-wise, things were not looking up for Smoke.

That's when it hit him. If he could cut off their entryway, they'd be beaten.

He took out several more with a combination of vicious chainsaw-swings and point-blank shotgun blasts. Then, drawing his sniper rifle, he took aim at an air vent. Aiming for dead center, he fired off an explosive slug… it shot through the air and into the vent… followed a moment later by a massive explosion that shook the room.

For a moment, decimated robot-parts rained down from the vent, and then it just sort've collapsed into itself; it filled up with rubble and cut off the sladebots' entryway. Smoke levered another slug into his rifle and repeated the process with the other air vents, blocking off all of the bots' entrance.

Victorious, Smoke reloaded his rifle and sat down on a large chunk of cement, wondering where he was supposed to go.

His question was answered for him when a large door on the other end of the room seemed to appear out of the shadows and open itself up.

Becoming tired, Smoke staggered through the doorway; it slammed closed behind him.

He was now standing in pitch-blackness. He literally could not see his own hand just a hair's length from his eyes… which was saying something, considering his genetically enhanced eyesight. Such darkness couldn't be natural…

He yelped, and fell to the ground on his butt when he was suddenly dazzled by a bright blast of light. Not normal light, though… it was reddish orange… with just a bit of yellow and gold tint added in. It almost seemed like… fire.

It shone down in a beam from a massive spotlight on the ceiling and illuminated the startled gunman, whose eyes were just now beginning to readjust.

Smoke could've sworn that somewhere up in the darkness before him, he saw a man. A silhouette of a man… garbed in a deathly black suit with shining silver armor plating covering it. He stepped forward… and soon, Smoke could make out a single, piercing eye in the darkness, surrounded by an orange half-mask; the rest of his face was pure black.

"I must admit. I'm very impressed, Smoke."

"… You…! That voice!"

"That's right. I'm the one who's going to guarantee that you get your chance to take down Myntull."

Smoke stared up at the rather alarming looking figure above him, standing on a platform in the dark between clanking machinery and eerie glowing.

"… Why? Why are you helping me?"

The man, whom we know to be Slade, narrowed his one, visible eye. "Just as I said. We have a common enemy. And if you're willing to do a few things for me… then we can kill him. But…"

Slade stared at Smoke in such a way that it seemed to go right through him, and see right down to his very soul… 'If I really have a soul…' Smoke thought. He shivered under the cutting glare.

"… To work with me, things are going to have to change."

"Change how?" Smoke asked sharply.

"You must forget all your laughable notions of friendship or justice. You must learn to be… ruthless. Calculating. Cunning. Deadly. And above all… supremely stoic."

Smoke clenched his teeth nervously. He didn't like those adjectives at all… well, the ones he knew; he had not the slightest clue what 'stoic' meant, but… it sounded bad.

"Why do you want me to do all this?" Smoke demanded softly.

"Because when you work for me, you are going to do things you once loathed. Stealing, breaking laws, fighting… perhaps even killing. But with every job you do, you get used to it. And who knows…? You may even…" His eye flashed venomously. "… like it."

Smoke backed up with a gasp. He was REALLY beginning to regret coming here.

"I can see you're having doubts." Slade mused. "Think of it this way, Smoke… it is the lesser of two evils: Me and Myntull. Work for me… just temporarily, you understand… and I can deliver him into your hands. However, if he is left to run wild… I fear for the city."

Something agonizing was going on in Smoke's mind right then. This was the chance of a lifetime, a golden opportunity, an offer he couldn't refuse!

But…

"My… my friends…" Smoke whispered hoarsely.

"Your friends will never have to know." Slade hissed in an eerily silky voice. "They will know nothing of the work you do for me."

Then, with an astounding leap, the man jumped off of the platform and high into the dark air, vanishing completely.

A moment later, however, he came down with a vicious stomp right in front of a startled Smoke. He held out his armored hand.

"Join me Smoke… working together, we can achieve our goals. You always wanted to be an equal. Not just someone's weapon, not just a tool… but an equal. I am giving you that chance. So… do we have an accord?"

Smoke stared blankly, face expressionless and devoid of emotion.

Then, with a single, fast, fluid movement… he took this man, whom he didn't even realize was Slade, by the hand. He shook his fist with a powerful, determined grip.

"Consider it accorded... Boss."


	25. Chapter TwentyFour

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans aren't mine._

_**Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-Four**_

It was extremely late at night, about midnight, to be exact… and a lone figure was pacing the floors at Titan's Tower. All of the Teen Titans were asleep… except for one.

There was something foreboding about the inky black night and the pale moonlight streaming in through a nearby window. Something about the combination of moonbeams and shadows created a kind of pale illusion; you didn't necessarily see what was really there, you saw a twisted, distorted reflection of it…

A tall, lanky figure with spiked hair was making his way towards the bathroom with a large, brown-leather sack. Looking around as though to make sure no one was watching, the silhouette stepped quickly inside the bathroom. A moment later, the locking of the door was announced by a small clicking sound. It didn't open again immediately.

About ten minutes passed in dreadful silence. Nothing at all happened. But then, the door opened up slowly once again… and the figure emerged, now dressed differently. Cautiously and nervously, the figure clicked the doorway shut again. Grabbing the sack, it went back to the garage.

Going into Smoke's small room, the figure hits light switch… and there stood Smoke himself, now dressed in the black, spiked, armored suit that Slade had given him.

Sighing, he opened up his closet and stuck the sack into it. He shut the closet door gently, and then strode over to his workbench. Grabbing his guns and his chainsaw, he strapped them on.

He grabbed a piece of scrap paper off the bench and a pen from his pocket. Hurriedly, he scrawled out a message and stuck the paper to the inside of the doorway with a slice of tape.

He looked around at the surroundings and sat down on his couch slowly. He sat there for a long time, not moving at all except for an occasional jerk or start as though something had startled him. His jumpy attitude and the fact that he was still awake at this hour suggested he had business to attend to…

With one last heavy sigh, he turned the lights off and exited his room, closing the door back as he did so.

* * *

A pair of security officers wearing black S.W.A.T. outfits and red goggles strode down a hallway with large laser cannons hefted in their arms.

"Relax guys. We can take it from here." Said a voice from the end of the hallway. The guards nodded and left.

The owner of the voice was none other than Bumblebee, leader of Titans East. Behind her stood a pair of young boys in white and red, who appeared to be no older than thirteen or so.

"Si, nosotros estamos apto amparar el quimico!" One of them chimed in. His white helmet had a yellow visor and a plus sign. A single lock of red hair protruded from the visor.

"Mi hermano esta correcto. El quimico es protegido." This one looked exactly like the other, except with a minus sign instead of a plus. These guys, of course, are the twins, Mas Y Menos, the resident Spanish speed-demons of Titans East.

"Uh… I think they said 'we can handle it'." The one who said this was speedy, clad in his red suit and very Robin-esque mask.

"Yeah." Aqualad agreed, running a hand through his jet-black hair. "Although… I can't figure out what kind of chemical could be so important that they asked us in person to guard it."

Earlier that day, a man had come to the Titans East Tower asking for assistance. A dangerous and rare new chemical was being stored at a high-security fortress complex in Steel City that night, and someone was needed to guard it… and who better than local heroes Titans East?

"Who cares what kind it is?" Bee said with an indifferent shrug. "It's our job to guard it until tomorrow."

Speedy looked around the corridor. The chemical itself was hidden inside a lab. The lab was locked behind a pair of massive, reinforced titanium doors at the end of the hallway. The hallway was fortified completely by automatic beam turrets programmed to gun down any and all intruders. And to even get into this hallway where they were, a huge laser grid would have to be passed, sounding an alarm if the grid was tripped.

"Hmph. No offense, but it seems to me it could guard itself." Speedy grumbled, twirling an arrow between his fingers. "I mean, come on… have you even taken a look at these security systems?"

"That's probably true. I don't see how anybody could possibly get in…" Aqualad sighed in response. "But still, if anybody's lucky enough to get past all that… we'll be here to stop them."

"Hmm… I'm curious. If this is such a super-secret thing they're doing, how would anybody know about it to steal it?" Speedy yawned.

"Never underestimate a criminal mind." Bee said matter-of-factly. "News travels fast and far in this city…"

* * *

Unbeknownst to these five superteens, they weren't the only ones out and about tonight…

As a guard stood watch outside the entrance to Fort Steel, he didn't notice in the dark, overcast night that a shadowy, distorted silhouette was skulking towards him.

He had just enough time to feel an unnaturally powerful arm lash out from the shadows like a viper and feel an iron grip close around his neck… because a moment later, he shrieked as his body lit up with countless volts of electricity.

He groaned and stopped moving, unconscious and smoking slightly. He was thrown against the entranceway and slid off slowly, completely out of it.

The assailant, none other than Smoke (who, in addition to his new uniform, was also wearing a large, baggy hood that hid his entire head.), stepped up and kicked the incapacitated guard out of the way with a flick of his boots.

Gazing at the massive fortified doors, he smiled. With a swift motion, he reached into his pack and removed a long, thick cylinder with red coloring and the letters 'T.N.T.' stamped onto the side… a stick of dynamite.

He took out eleven more of these to make a dozen, and then a big roll of ducktape. Grasping the TNT in one hand, he taped it up into a bundle and taped it to the doors. Taking out a silver lighter and sighing darkly, he lit all the fuses and did a few massive flips far backwards to get out of the way.

The lit fuses burned for a few moments, each tense second seeming to ring with silence. And then, the night was turned into day for a few moments, accompanied by an explosion loud enough to shake the very ground on which we stand.

The charred, broken doors teetered alarmingly and then came tumbling down with an inner-ear shattering, metallic crash and the hissing sizzle of smoldering embers.

Smoke stepped over the rubble, the spurs on his boots clicking as he walked. Slowly and with a dark purpose, he made his way into the fort.

* * *

The explosion hadn't gone unnoticed. Speedy, who'd been lounging half-asleep on a wall, started out of his light slumber as the explosion echoed down the long corridor. He blinked.

"… What was… that?"

"Er… Un explosion gigante?" Mas suggested.

"Si… mucho grande." Menos piped in.

Aqualad shifted nervously. "Uh… Maybe it was just thunder or something…"

"It's not even raining." Bumblebee sighed, rolling her dark eyes. "That was definitely some kind of explosion."

"Are you trying to say someone's breaking in?" Speedy asked, arching an eyebrow. "We haven't even been here an hour!"

They rudely interrupted from their conversation by a shrill alarm and an array of flashing red lights. Five pairs of eyes turned towards the shimmering red laser-grid at the far end of the corridor.

Someone was walking through it. A guy in all black suit, but with golden skull-shaped shoulder pads… silver spikes on his shoulder tops… and several weapons strapped to his body.

He wasn't actually making any attempt to avoid tripping the lasers, but rather, was just striding nonchalantly through, as though he really didn't care if he set off the alarm or not.

Immediately, the security system thundered into action. Every single pair or laser beam turrets in the place… all 36 pairs of them… swiveled into position and opened fire in a sudden storm of red lights, loud buzzing, and searing heat.

The figure broke into a sudden run at inhuman speed, leaving a steaming, laser-fire-marred, crater where he'd been standing mere moments before.

"Whoa… he's fast…" Aqualad said, jaw dropping.

With a loud clanking noise, a hatch opened up in the roof and a massive pendulum-style steel blade swung outwards as a surprise trap.

Smoke sneered under his breath and pulled his chainsaw off his waist, extending the blade with a flourish. A split second later, he cranked the beavertooth up just in time to sidestep the trap and slice the approaching blade in half. While the two halves were still in midair, he karate-kicked both of them, sending them flying towards the Titans East.

"Ay! Tenga cuidado!" Mas Y Menos shouted simultaneously, zipping out of the way in time to avoid being crushed by two tons of flying steel. When the Smoke cleared, they poked their small heads out from behind the debris and went, "_Phew_… Eso era cercano…"

"Who is this guy…?" Aqualad wondered aloud.

"Whoever he is… he's dead now." Speedy growled, drawing his bowstring with an explosive arrow. Taking careful aim at Smoke, who was now blasting the turrets apart with lightning bolts, he shot the arrow.

With all the turrets zapped into submission, Smoke turned his shimmering hazel eyes, hidden by his hood, towards the arrow. With reflexes no normal person could muster, he whipped out his revolvers… which, courtesy of Slade, had been heavily modified.

Both revolvers had their cylinders removed, and replaced with tube-shaped ammo clips attached on the underside, allowing them to fire far more than just six shots at a time. The inner workings had been tuned up and rigged so that they now fired in full-auto fashion, like Uzis. Switchblades had been mounted onto the grip, allowing for close range attacks. In addition to the lasersights Smoke had added, they also now had built-in flashlights for combat in dark areas. Their color scheme was now silver and black.

With an astonishing rate of fire, the revolvers spat a stream of bullets that ripped the arrow apart in midair long before it even came close to hitting him. The resulting explosion shook the building.

"… **Damn**! No one should be that good of a shot!" Speedy swore angrily.

"I'll take care of this guy." Bee said, shrinking down to bug size and flying towards him at high speed.

Smoke, not having noticed this, was still walking calmly down the hallway… until he felt a couple of high energy blasts from Bee's stinger weapons… right on the butt.

"_**YOWCH**_!" He yelped, grabbing his backside and hopping about, cursing loudly and frantically. "You little bitch!"

She laughed and buzzed in circles around his head. Growling, he brought up his revolver's bladed handle in an attempt to splat her like a mosquito. Unfortunately, she buzzed out of the way and he just hacked himself in the forehead, prompting another string of obscenities.

"Like shockin' people, do ya?" He snarled. "How about getting shocked back?"

Smoke formed a sphere of greenish-yellow ball lightning in his hand and detonated it. The resulting explosion of electrical power didn't harm him, but it blew Bumblebee several feet back and zapped her back to normal size.

She groaned and shook her head, crawling up onto her elbows. Smoke, fed up, pulled out his shotgun, also modified by Slade.

The shotgun was modified from a ten gauge to an eight gauge, and it was sawn off even further. Instead of having to reload after each shot, it had been renovated into a pump-action model, allowing Smoke to fire up to twelve shells in rapid succession without reloading. It's large, now metallic, handle had an axe blade attached for melee combat. Like the revolvers, it was now black and silver.

"Time to die, bug lady." Smoke said calmly, taking aim and cocking the gun.

**_BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!_**

Five shots rang out in instants succession, but Bee never felt them. When she opened her eyes, she gasped. A wall of water was between her and the needles from the shotgun, thanks to Aqualad. The water, having blocked the shots, crashed down onto Smoke and knocked him back with a sharp cry.

Aqualad emerged from the water and grabbed Smoke. Lifting him up and twirling him around above his head at high speed, he hurled him into a nearby wall, where he slammed into it and made a dent, then slid slowly off.

The young Atlantean sent a tornado of water spinning through the air at Smoke, ready to finish him off. Smoke, however, was not one to be beaten quite so easily.

"Hey Pansy Boy… didn't your Mama ever tell ya that water and electricity don't mix…?"

Smoke sent a lightning bolt at the typhoon of water, sending a powerful electric charge through it… right up into Aqualad.

In a flash of light and a shower of sparks, he screamed and was thrown to the side by the bolt. Smoke chuckled darkly under his breath, getting up. A few more arrows, a la Speedy, came flying his way but he blew them apart with a few well-placed shotgun blasts.

Tired of the archer, Smoke removed his rifle. An insanely long barrel with a silencer on the muzzle, a sturdy black scope complete with infrared and night vision, and a golden hair trigger made this incarnation of the gun much more deadly than the last.

A deafening bang split the night whilst a pair of explosive rifle slugs blew the unlucky Speedy across the room, badly wounded and unconscious… he was officially out of the fight.

Reloading, Smoke took a deep breath and turned his head in time to see Bee flying at from his left, and Aqualad attempting a tackle at his immediate right.

Thinking fast, Smoke leapt into the air and the two heroes simply collided with each other… a moment later, a lit stick of dynamite dropped down from the air and the stunned pair had to scramble out of the way to avoid being blown to bits.

However, they couldn't get quite out of the way fast enough and were sent reeling through the air by the blast, thumping into the ground… both out cold.

"… You're good. Real good. But not as good as me." Smoke said calmly, holstering his weaponry and starting towards the doorway again. He was, this time, interrupted by a headbutt to the belly that knocked him down.

Mas Y Menos were still in his way. Zipping towards him, Mas leapt onto his neck and Menos grabbed his legs.

"Get offa me, you Mexican midgets!" He screamed angrily, zapping the Hell out of them with a surge of electricity. They tumbled off with a pair of soft moans, and he kicked them away like footballs.

Grinning and lighting a handful of TNT, he tossed the red sticks at the huge doors, and blew them apart utterly. With no one left to stop him, he strode through… and came dashing out a moment later holding a sealed test tube filled with a sizzling green liquid.

"Smoke… Smoke? Are you still up?" Blackfire whispered, walking into his room. "I wanted to talk to you about somethi—"

Smoke's couch was empty.

Her eyes widened. She turned around to leave, thinking he might have gone to the bathroom… and that's when she noticed two things. Number one, his truck was gone. Number two, there was a note taped to the back of his door. She pulled it off curiously and read it silently to herself.

'_Dear Whoever-Finds-This,_

_Sorry to leave so late and without warning, but I had a few late-night errands to run. See you guys in the morning; I'll be back soon._

_Yours truly…_

_--Smoke'_

Surprised and a little worried, Blackfire sighed and hovered back off towards Star's room again, making a mental note to ask him in the morning.

* * *

"Impressive. Very, very impressive." Slade mumbled listlessly, examining the small test tube that had just been handed to him by a kneeling figure in black.

"I kept my end of our deal. Now… can you tell me where Myntull is or not?" Smoke asked. "I'm tired of breaking laws…"

"Of course. I always keep my promises…" Slade said formally. "But the answer is simple my friend. I thought you would've figured it out by now."

"What're you talking' about?"

"My boy… Your Dr. Myntull is…"

Smoke leaned up onto the toes of his boots in eager anticipation.

"… Right behind you."

_**…**_

_**…**_

_**…**_

_**…**_

_**…**_

_**…**_

As Smoke turned, he had time to see a flash of metal as a robotic tail lashed towards him, accompanied by a gale of electronic, static-filled, insane cackling.

All went black.


	26. Chapter TwentyFive

_Disclaimer: The Teen Titans aren't my property, sadly._

_**Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-Five**_

"I must say… I always knew he was a simpleton. But this is low… any fool could have seen this coming." Myntull rumbled, chuckling darkly. "… I am ashamed any creation of mine could possibly have been so daft."

"True." Slade agreed, also chuckling behind his half mask. "… But when their arch-enemy is involved, some people… tend to be a bit shortsighted."

Myntull and Slade were standing in a dark, dingy, underground laboratory beneath Slade's lair. Myntull was currently filling a needle syringe with the green chemical that Smoke stole recently.

"The fool… and he honestly never realized who you were?" Myntull hissed in amazement.

"He never once suspected." Slade confirmed. "His little friends told him about me, I'm sure. But he never put two and two together…"

Slade glanced at the gunman in question, unconscious and strapped to a small, rickety, iron operating table with a thin white sheet and a lumpy old pillow… both covered with numerous blood-stains…

"Is the chemical ready for injection?"

Myntull nodded his huge metal head, his brain-juice foaming and bubbling. "Yes. But I should warn you… once I've administered this, he will be completely uncontrollable."

Slade's exposed eye narrowed. "We no longer need to control him… we only need him to serve as a distraction…" He paused. "Explain to me one more time what this substance is?"

Myntull's silvery chest-area jutted out proudly. "This…" He grated. "… Is a type of substance derived from a combination of highly potent steroids, pure adrenaline, and fast-acting hallucinogens. Once it enters the bloodstream, the host becomes… berserk. Insane. Dangerous… and utterly wild."

"Good. That should prove an adequate decoy for his friends while we make final preparations. Inject it now."

Myntull hesitated. "Are… are you sure? Right now?"

"… Are you questioning me, Doctor?"

"Oh no! Of course not! Here… I'll administer it immediately…"

Although Myntull easily dwarfed Slade in size, he still seemed to fear and respect him…

Carefully, he inserted the needle into Smoke's arm… and injected the sizzling fluid.

… And in his sleep, Smoke moaned.

* * *

Robin was not having a good morning. The moment he'd woken up and walked out of his door, he'd noticed immediately something was amiss…

This time of year, the weather should have been bright, balmy, and sunny… and most of the time it was.

This morning, however, it was pouring down rain. Cloudy skies and bitter gusts of wet, cold wind blew all around the city. Strange weather… very strange.

Next, Blackfire had stumbled into Robin's room, badly distraught and helped along by Sub-Zero and Cyborg. She seemed to be straining to hold back tears and couldn't quite manage to speak without her voice breaking and wavering.

"Something's wrong… Smoke is missing." Zero had sighed. Blackfire swallowed a lump in her throat and nodded.

"H-he… he left sometime last n-night… late at n-night… he hasn'-t c-c-come back." She stammered, between gasps and wiping of her eyes. Cyborg patted her on the shoulder.

"He left a note." The bionic teen said, motioning towards Zero. The knight nodded and removed said note from a pocket on his belt. He handed it to Robin, who read it quickly and frowned.

"… He still hasn't come back yet?"

"N-no… what if something… something…" Blackfire swallowed again. "Something h-happened to… him…"

Robin opened his mouth to speak, about to console the overwrought Tamaranean… when another overwrought Tamaranean and a pair of frowning sorceresses burst into the doorway… Starfire, Raven, and Jinx.

"Robin… we've got a problem." Raven said.

"… Another one?" Robin groaned. "What now?"

"Titans East got roughed up badly last night." Jinx explained.

Tearfully, Starfire handed a Titans communicator to Robin. He took it and turned it on… "Hello?"

The first thing his saw was Mas… or was it Menos?… Sticking his small head up and babbling panicked in Spanish. In the background there was yelling and arguing.

"¡Es un desastre¡Hemos sido atacados; una persona misteriosa trató de matarnos!"

"Oh for the love of… Gimme that, Menos!"

The face on the screen switched to Aqualad, a large bandage on his face and holding one arm painfully. "Robin! We need some more medical supplies at the Tower, A.S.A.P.!"

Robin's masked eyes widened in shock. "What happened?"

"Well, we're okay… for the most part… but Speedy… he's in bad shape. He was shot."

"Shot?"

"Yeah. You knew we were asked to guard that chemical, right?"

"I heard about it, Mm-hmm."

"Well, it was stolen. Whoever the guy was… we didn't stand a chance; he couldn't have been human…"

"Okay… just hang tight guys. We'll be over there as soon as possible! Robin out…" He deactivated the communicator.

Robin looked to his dismayed comrades and groaned. This was going to be one helluva day…

* * *

Myntull and Slade were discussing plans and operations… until they were suddenly interrupted by a massive explosion.

They hurried into the laboratory, only to see it in shambles. A hole had literally been blown through the roof, presumably with dynamite, and the ground above had been blasted up in a tall tunnel… a ray of sunlight shone down from above. Smoke was awake… and he'd blasted his way up.

Slade laughed softly. "… Perfect."

* * *

_**A Few Hours Later…**_

The supplies had been delivered to Titans East's Tower without incident. While they were there, they'd helped patch up Speedy, who was, thankfully, going to be fine with a bit of rest and some frequent bandage changes.

Also, a bit of a flirting session had come up between Cyborg and Bee, prompting a fit of sniggers from Beast Boy… though neither of them seemed to notice.

Aqualad and Sub-Zero had remained deeply engaged in conversation most of the time they were there, discussing Zero's only recently discovered ancestry.

Mas Y Menos had made a few more attempts to woo Starfire… to limited effect; they quickly ceased when Robin gave them a rather cold glare.

Raven was using her powers to help heal Speedy, while Terra and Jinx were having a conversation with each other in the main room.

Blackfire was the odd person out. She didn't say anything the entire time they were there, but rather, stared pensively out the window at the stormy day outside.

When they left Steel City on the way back to Jump, they thought maybe Smoke would be waiting for them at the Tower.

They were half right. He was waiting for them… but not at the tower.

About a mile out from the Tower, near the office building district, Starfire happened to be gazing out the window of the T-Car… suddenly, she gasped and grabbed for Robin's arm.

He looked over at her, somewhat alarmed by her sudden shock. "Huh? What's wrong, Star?"

She pointed out the window.

A particularly large office building nearby, empty at this time of day; it was lunch break, had a very familiar vehicle parked outside… Smoke's souped-up humvee truck. And up on the roof, a dim figure was standing… bolts of lightning were coming down on him as if he were a living lightning rod… but he didn't seem troubled. In fact, he stretched his arms out, as if enjoying every single volt.

Blackfire had noticed this, too. "… _No_… Smoke?"

Cyborg pulled the T-Car over and blinked. "What the…? What's he doin'?"

"It doesn't matter. We've got to get him down from there; he could slip and fall!" Blackfire said, badly disgruntled.

Putting the T-Car in park, they got out. Zero, who'd been riding with Jinx using his 'ice-gliding' trick (With an umbrella so that they wouldn't get wet) noticed this and stopped also.

They made their way into the building; the doors were luckily unlocked. They took a couple of elevators up to the top floor and then took a flight of escalators up to the roof.

"Smoke! Where've you been, dude!" Beast Boy called, motioning to get his attention.

"Yeah, why are you up here? And why…" Terra paused uncertainly. "Why… are you in those clothes?" She asked squeakily, referring to his Slade uniform.

Smoke said absolutely nothing. He stood still as a statue. Everybody yelped and stumbled back when another lightning bolt thundered down from the sky and lit him up like a trailer park at Christmas. Still, he didn't even flinch.

"Smoke…? Answer us!" Zero said, confused.

No response.

Hesitantly, Blackfire hovered over and put a hand on his shoulder. He jerked as if struck; she gasped and floated backwards. Then, he turned his head around to look at them… prompting a collective gasp from the group.

Something was wrong… very wrong. Smoke looked exactly as before, with the exception of the clothes and the… the eyes… his eyes. Lifeless and hollow, they stared out from deep sockets, with a shadowy ring under his eyes. He looked… like death warmed over.

Then, before anyone could react, he laughed. Without warning, he burst into uncontrollable laughter; he howled with mirth for no apparent reason. It was… frightening.

He let out a noise that might have been a growl or a sob or a laugh or all three in one… and fired a massive jolt of electricity at his bewildered friends.

Before they had time to recover, he leapt into them, tossing Raven to the side, tackling Cyborg to the ground in the process… when Robin tried to stop him; he punched him hard enough to send him slamming into Star, sending the pair reeling across the wet, bumpy rooftop… Kicked Beast Boy into Terra, then, lifted them both up and hurled them on top of the others.

He turned to Blackfire, speechless and stunned with shock, glaring at her with those animal eyes, empty and maddened-looking. He made a motion as if to pounce on her, but… he froze. He stood stiff as a board. Then, he fell to his knees clutching his head.

"No! Black… can't… Star…" He groaned loudly, stuttering badly and making no sense. Finally, he managed to turn towards his stunned friends and utter one intelligible sentence. "Cybo..borg…shoot… me… now…!"

The robotic hero's eyes went wide. "… **What**?"

"Sho…shoot…now…dammit… kill… can't control… Blackfire, Myntull…." Once again, he was making no sense, but was writhing around on the ground as though in intense pain.

As the others got up and approached him, Blackfire and Zero knelt at his side.

"What are you talking about?" Zero demanded. "You're not making any sense!"

"Please… kill… me… hurry! No time! Myntull… chemical…" He shuddered and coughed. A long silence ensued in which the only sound was a soft sob from Blackfire.

Then, suddenly: "My fault… all… my fault. I've done it… helped… them…"

He shrieked abruptly, and leapt up, knocking Zero away but not touching Blackfire. He dashed over to the side of the roof, and did a swan dive off the building. Blackfire and Star screamed, while the others scrambled to look over the edge… just in time to see Smoke's truck hauling ass towards the Tower.

* * *

They lost track of him on the way back, but when they entered the living room of the Tower, there was no question he'd been there. A large tape recorder sat on the couch and a computer had been booted up and was displaying a file on Slade and Titans East.

"What… what is his deal?" Robin demanded. "Something has to be wrong with him… why did he attack us? Why was he in those clothes?"

"And… he sounded… crazy." Raven said slowly. "He was raving like a madman on that roof…"

"Guys…" Zero had noticed the tape recorder. "I'm going out on a limb 'ere, but… maybe this'll shed some light on the situation…"

As they gathered around, Zero took a deep breath and pushed the play button on the recorder.

_"… Hello. This is Smoke. I don't have much time… but I have to tell you… everything. Everything I can. A couple days ago, I received a package telling me to contact a certain person in exchange for information on Myntull's whereabouts. Using the small radio that came in the box, I followed those instructions… I was a fool."_

_"The man wore a mask. I never saw his face… but now I know… Oh God… If I had known who… who… Slade…"_ There was a pause and the sound of a sigh. _"It was Slade, but I was too ignorant to even realize it. He told me he'd give me Myntull if I worked for him."_

_"Once again, I made one of my last mistakes. I did what he said… I invaded Fort Steel in Steel City… stole a chemical from some guards with superpowers… whom I now know were friends of yours… Titans East. I never knew… had I but known…"_

_"It makes no difference, anyway. Myntull was working for Slade. They put that stolen chemical in me and now I'm a threat to everybody and everything. I'm an idiot. I'm a damned fool! If I had just… thought… thought any of his out…"_ There was another pause, this time with a coughing sound. _"They were right. They are still right. They'll always be right: I'm a monster. And I can't even trust myself anymore… I attacked you… I'm so sorry…"_

_"When you get here to the Tower, I'll be long gone. Gone from the Tower… Gone from Jump City… Gone from a world I never belonged in. Goodbye… for the last time. And… I… I'm sorry. Oh God… what've I done…? I'm… s…s…**Sorry**…"_

The last _sorry_ suddenly gave way to a loud screaming noise, followed by static on the player; then, the recording reached its end, going silent with a rusty click.


	27. Chapter TwentySix

_Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Titans in any way or part._

_**Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-Six**_

Smoke's mind was in bad shape. He never thought; he only acted. His vision consisted mainly of blurred redness with pulsing white silhouettes where people were. In his maddened state, he attacked indiscriminately. However, he seemed to prefer fighting armed foes; he'd yet to actually harm any civilians… only police and soldiers.

He had an urge, an insatiable craving… to fight. To destroy… but not necessarily to kill. It would be more accurate to say… an irresistibly dark need to blow the crap out of as much stuff as possible.

He was running at high speed, knocking cars out his way with powerful swings of his forearms… the police were doing all they could, with the assistance of the army itself, but to no effect. Bullet wounds seemed to regenerate instantly and only make Smoke angrier.

A line of tanks thundered down the street while heavily armed S.W.A.T. soldiers helped civilians evacuate.

With a deafening explosion, the tanks fired their cannons simultaneously, wiping out the entire area of block where Smoke stood. He, however, crawled up from the remains a moment later laughing and twitching. Grabbing a fistful of lit dynamite, he hurled several sticks into one of the tanks cannons… a moment later, the armored assault vehicle blew apart from the inside.

Breaking into a run at the rest, he hurled several orbs of ball lightning, wiping more tanks out while the sergeants cried out hoarse orders to retreat. It was no good. By the time the tanks were in reverse, Smoke was upon them. He pounced onto one and ripped its entrance hatch off with his bare hands. Reaching down, he grabbed up one of the members of the tank crew and snapped his neck, tossing the body into the street.

He massacred the rest of the soldiers with his shotgun and blew up the rest of the tanks with his rifle.

A low-pitched hum from above announced the arrival of several jets. They swooped down and let loose several sidewinder missiles, blowing up a massive portion of the street. Smoke did several flips and sidesteps, dodging debris and taking the blast without so much as a flinch. His skin was torn and burnt, but he didn't seem to notice… in fact, the wounds seemed to be healing every moment.

Taking a massive leap, Smoke began climbing the side of a tall office building, bounding from gutter spout to flagpole to windowsill, until finally, he was on the roof. When the jets curved in midair and U-Turned towards Smoke, he was ready for them. He jumped.

Grabbing onto the wing of one of the jets, he climbed across the airborne vehicle and onto the cockpit. Cranking his saw in one hand and staring dementedly, he sawed his way through the windows and the last thing the pilot ever saw was a pair of hollow, angry eyes and a whirring chainsaw blade. The plane crashed to the ground, erupting into a wall of black steam and a sheet of flames.

Smoke had leapt off before it had crashed and landed on another rooftop, wiping bloodstains off his chainsaw. The jets came back again, preparing to launch more missiles. He whipped out his revolvers and opened rapid-fire bullets onto the jets. They were instantly punched full of holes, burning and screeching as they crashed to the building he was on. He leapt off just before the building crumbled…

Still, he was not unopposed. A group of Apache helicopters flew over his head, opening fire with Minigun turrets. He growled as he felt the bullets rip into him. Lifting a hand, his body lit up with golden-green light and several lightning bolts thundered down from the heavens, blowing the choppers to smithereens.

He laughed long and hard, but then, a moment later, fell to the ground and let out a loud wail of anguish, clutching his head and twitching.

* * *

"… Damn! This son of a bitch can't be invincible!" An army general snarled, banging his camo-gloved fist into the desktop in his large tent.

He was abruptly interrupted from his rant by a nervous corporal who stumbled in and saluted shakily. "… S-Sir! Visitors requesting an audience with you, sir!"

"Tell them to get the Hell out! Can't they see I've got my hands full already?"

"But S-Sir…"

"Are you questioning my orders, Corporal?"

"It's the Teen Titans, Sir!"

The general dropped the coffee mug he'd been taking a hearty gulp out of; it promptly shattered on the ground.

"… Well, why didn't you say so in the first place? Tell them to get in here!" Then, under his breath: "… It's about damn time…"

As the heroes in question filed into the tent, Robin spoke before the General could even open his mouth.

"General! You've got to stop this at once! We can't kill him!" He said. "And I mean that both ways: Physical and Moral."

"…What? Why the Hell not? He's destroying the city!"

"It's not his fault! He's under the influence of some kind of… chemical drug. He can't help it."

"Okay… but why can't we kill him?"

"Well, number one: you couldn't kill him if you tried; he's too strong. And number two… because he doesn't deserve it!"

For a moment, the hardened generals face seemed to go limp with pity, perhaps even understanding. "… I'm sorry. But there's no other way."

Blackfire and Zero shoved their way past Robin.

"There is a way! Please, sir…" Zero attempted to sound as polite as possible. "… If we can just get a chance to talk to him… to see him… I'm sure that we could snap him out of this, at least for a while."

Blackfire nodded. "This isn't what he's like, I swear! He would never do any of this if he had a choice!"

A sudden peal of gunfire prompted the group to look out the window.

Smoke had both revolvers out and was gunning down a long line of soldiers with dual streams of rapid-fire bullets. Everyone winced or looked away.

Raven took the opportunity to step up. "… Look. We know he's still in there somewhere, I can…" She looked for the best way to say it. "I can sense it. I can sense him trapped inside struggling for control."

The general looked despondently out of the small window… and his face suddenly lit up.

"Hang on a tick…" He scratched the stubble beard on his leathery chin. "… I think… I think I know how to solve both our problems. Robin, come here…"

Robin stepped over and the big military man whispered something in his ears. He cocked an eyebrow.

"… That… that's just… desperate enough to work." He looked over at his teammates. "Cy, Zero, Black… come here for a minute."

They walked over and he whispered something to them as well, the rest of the Titans craning their necks to hear.

Blackfire broke away looking horrified and outraged. "No! We can't do that… that's so… so… underhanded."

Cyborg sighed. "She's right, it's kind of low… but… it's the only way."

Sub-Zero looked at Blackfire. "… And you're just the person to be able to do it."

The dark-tressed Tamaranean looked out the window and bit her lip, sighing sadly. "… Okay. I… I'll do it. I won't like it, but… I'll do it…"

* * *

Smoke was in the middle of reloading and licking his lips rather sadistically. But just then, a voice came ringing to his ears that was… different. Different from the myriad of muffled and nonsensical babble he'd been hearing this whole time. It sounded… almost familiar.

"Smoke!"

He looked up dully, eyes empty and unseeing. He heard it a second time, this time from two voices.

"Smoke! Smoke!"

He… He… knew these voices… didn't he?

Suddenly, Smoke whipped his head sharply towards the source of the cries. There stood Robin, Cyborg, Blackfire, and Sub-Zero… the rest had stayed behind in case something went wrong.

"Smoke… stop this! Now!" Robin said in a tone that was part commanding, part pleading.

"C'mon, man! You can't let this stuff manipulate you any more!" Cyborg yelled, pumping his fists.

"Smoke… my friend… this is below you." Zero sighed loudly, shaking his head. "You can do so much better than this! So don't let it control you! Break free! Resist!"

Blackfire hovered off the ground slightly and gazed at Smoke sadly. "Please… Smoke… you have to stop. If not for yourself, then for us… for me." The 'me' she said was soft, barely audible. "… Smoke, I… I never really told you this but… I think I… love you."

Smoke, all throughout this had been getting more and more peaceful, a glimmer of comprehension dawning in his scarred young face. Finally, at the phrase 'love you', his eyes went wide and full once more. He stared at them, his gaze becoming rapidly more human.

"… Blackfire?" His voice was hoarse and breaking, weak and airy. "… Help… me…"

She floated forward and held out her left hand invitingly, placing her right hand over her heart. "Smoke… come here, please… take my hand."

Clumsily, but with a look of living recognition, he stumbled towards her… she struggled not to sob. Not just from seeing the person she cared so much for in such a pitiful state…

… But also when she saw the line of men with rifles approaching them behind Smoke's back.

Reaching out, he shakily took her hand and squeezed. She sniffed and took him in an embrace, stroking his short, spiky hair. She whispered into his ear: "Smoke… I'm sorry."

And the next thing he felt in her arms was a swarm of massive tranquilizer darts puncturing his back. He collapsed into her arms, completely out cold.

* * *

Cyborg sighed heavily as he looked at the small computer screen next to Smoke's cot in the Titan's Tower infirmary.

"I gotta give that Mytnull credit for one thing: He knows how to make 'em sturdy. Everything Smoke's body's been through… most people woulda been dead ten times by now."

Thankfully, the small pulse monitor still displayed the jagged line and the rhythmic beeps that indicated he was still with them.

"… Do you think that the chemical will lose its effects soon?" Starfire asked. "I… It gives me pain to see friend Smoke bound like this…"

Indeed, they had Smoke strapped to the cot just in case his other side arose again.

"I know, Star." Robin sighed. "But… it's for his own good."

"Most people would be under this stuff's effects for months… but with a fast metabolism like Smoke's, I'd say the stuff will wear off in… Oh, say… another hour or so. He's already been under its influence a while, and It shouldn't be long before it's outta his system…"

"Good." Jinx said. "… Smoke's a good guy. I hate seeing him like this…" She looked a bit ill as she said this.

Sub-Zero gripped her slender hand reassuringly. "Don't worry… Smoke's a tough hombre. He'll be fine."

"Dude, you sound so sure…" Beast Boy said, impressed. But then, his small pointed ears drooped sadly. "But… I just can't help but worry."

"I've had to go through not being able to control myself, but… still…" Terra said. "At least I was still lucid. Smoke… I can't imagine what he's going through."

Blackfire was sitting on a chair next to Smoke's cot, looking very forlorn. She still felt awful over having been the 'bait' in the general's plan… she'd meant every word she'd said to him, took him in her arms… but only to have him shot in the back.

They waited for about an hour and a half when suddenly, an alarm went off on Cyborg's computer. He walked over and checked it, eyes going wide.

"Guys! Look at this!"

They gathered around the small monitor. A bar graph was displayed with the title, 'Presence Of Unknown Chemical In Smoke's Body'. A small bar labeled, 'Unknown Chemical' was at forty three percent full… and rapidly dropping. Thirty… twenty… ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two… One…

"… Zero." Sub-Zero whispered (No pun intended.)

And then, Smoke awoke with a groan.

As his eyes flickered to life and slowly fluttered open, the corners twitched slightly. He looked around blearily, not quite comprehending where he was or why…

… And then, everything hit him like Muhammad Ali on steroids.

And immediately, he began struggling against his bonds, voicing his protest.

"**NO**! I _can't_ be here! You have to kill me; hurry up! Before I change again, I can't keep control forever!"

Blackfire put a hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently. "No! You're free now…"

He stopped writhing around and stared. "… What?"

"That's stuff's out of your body now… you don't have to worry about changing again." Cyborg explained.

"… Out… gone? Permanently?"

"Yep. Permanently."

Robin spoke up. "Smoke… it's good to have you back." He said with a light grin. He walked over and began untying Smoke. The gunman sat up and stared around listlessly, his face sagging in a gloomy frown.

"… Apparently, you guys never got the message…"

Beast Boy blinked. "… Message?"

"The tape… I had just enough time to make a tape just before I changed last time…"

"We got it." Sub-Zero interrupted. "We heard you loud and clear."

"… And…?" Smoke seemed almost irritated, but with a look of profound grief creeping across his features.

Terra cocked an eyebrow questioningly. "… And what? What more is there to say?"

"You're saying you forgive me. Just like that." It was more of a statement than a question. "…"

"What's to forgive? Smoke, it's not like you wanted to do all those things… and as for working for Slade, well…" Raven paused. "You didn't know who you were working for, and you had good intentions… although I still have to say, it was extremely reckless of you… but no, we don't blame you for any of this."

"And besides… you aren't the only one." Robin said.

"I'm not the only one what?"

"Who's worked for Slade before."

There was a long, awkward pause.

"Friend Smoke… no matter what you believe, it fills me with great joy to see you reverted back to your former self." Starfire proclaimed, beaming.

The gunner stared blankly. "… _Wha_…?"

"She means she's glad to see you as your old, wisecracking, pyromaniac self." Blackfire explained with a grin. "… And… So am I."

"Oh. Right. I knew that." He said falteringly, shifting his eyes.

"Regardless, though…" Smoke continued. "I just… I don't even know if I can trust myself anymore. And I wish there was something I could to make things right again…"

Robin nodded. "You can."

"What?"

"Smoke… do you remember where Slade's hideout was?"

"Uh… well… he teleported me there at first, but… when I had to go back after stealing that chemical…" He closed his eyes in deep thought. "Yeah… yeah, I remember…"

"Do you think you could take us there?"

"… Yeah. Yeah, I could, now that you mention it."

A look of comprehension appeared in Smoke's facial expression. He smiled for the first time in a while.

"Guys…" He cranked his chainsaw. "How about… we go carve ourselves a couple bad pumpkins?"

The Titans couldn't have agreed more.

_**Smoke's free from the influence of the chemical, at last. And it's a good thing, too 'cause the final battle is fast approaching.**_

_**Next time: It's High Noon as the Smokester faces off with Myntull. Robin will get a chance to take care of Slade once and for all. And let's just say… Zero will get a rematch with a large, winged foe he hasn't seen in a while…**_

_**Read and Review! The story is almost over, so keep an eye out once I finish for my third fic in this series! It's gonna be big… heheheh.**_

_**Anyway, later y'all… (coughpleasereviewlotscough)**_

_**--Count Le Madphantom…**_


	28. Chapter TwentySeven

_Disclaimer: I do not, did not, and will not own the Teen Titans… Humph._

_**Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-Seven**_

_**HIGH NOON—Part One**_

"How's everything going?" Robin asked, stuffing several sets of rather deadly-looking weapons and tools into his already-packed utility belt. "… Be sure you're ready; this is gonna take all we've got."

"Well, I've just finished sharpening my blade…" Sub-Zero responded, drawing his sword, Eviglasere, with a frosty hiss; it seemed much more cruelly pointed and jagged than usual.

He sheathed it again with a pleased smile. "… And I just ate five gallons of ice cream, so I have both an adequate supply of cold-essence in me, and plenty of sugary goodness for energy." He wiped his mouth on his cape while Robin groaned and sweat dropped.

"Zero, what did I tell you about eating too much ice cream?" His pink-tressed girlfriend asked with a cross frown.

He sighed and smiled sheepishly. "I know, I know darling, but… can you blame me? We're going to need as much energy as we can muster to take down Slade and Myntull together… and besides…" He sat down on the couch and peered at the ceiling pensively. "… Who knows…? This may be the last time I have any…"

She was immediately sitting beside him, grabbing his right hand in hers; she squeezed it reassuringly. "Don't ever say stuff like that!" She scolded. "You know nothing's going to happen to us…"

Zero just smiled and leaned over to her, giving her a sweet kiss on the lips. "… Thanks, Jinx. I needed that."

"She's right." Robin added. "Nothing's going to go wrong. Slade and Myntull are outnumbered."

"Heheh… and outgunned… no pun intended." Smoke crowed, swaggering into the room… but keeping his arms behind his back and his back in the hallway so that they couldn't see what was behind him…

"Uh… Smoke…? What've you got there?" Jinx asked. Then, her cat-like eyes narrowed. "Or do I even want to know? Some kind of bomb?"

He sniffed and gave the small witch a look of mock-hurt. "… Bomb? Bomb? Jinx, you cut me to the core."

Zero sighed softly. "Just tell us what it is… please."

The gunman laughed softly and lowly under his breath. "What is it, you say? Why, it's simply the biggest innovation in high-ordinance warfare since the day they came up with yours truly!"

He puffed out his chest and reached into his back pocket, revealing…

… A small black stick of metal.

The Boy wonder snorted derisively. "… Uh… Right… you're gonna fight a titanic madman with a body of steel and antifreeze for blood, piloted by a criminally insane brain…" Robin cocked his masked eyebrow skeptically. "… With a little stick…?"

"Oh thou of little faith…" Smoke chuckled, closing his eyes and nodding knowingly.

Without another word, he pressed a small switch on the side of the metal bar.

Rapidly, before anyone even knew what was happening, the thing was… growing. It slid apart, pieces and accessories popping out at high speed, lengthening, becoming broader and thicker, enlarging and getting heavier…

And the next thing they knew, they were looking at a giant rifle on the ground.

A golden four and a half-feet long barrel stretched out in a straight line from a brown, wooden handle carved out of highly polished oak. The trigger was thick and black, curving into a sharp point. The top of the rifle held a massive, 5 lb. Scope made out of sterling silver with crosshairs and a small, but hi-tech, computer display encased in a deceptively simple wooden exterior. The handle alone seemed a good three feet long and the space with the trigger and the scope was at least a foot and a half… overall, the rifle was maybe nine or ten feet long… unusually massive, even for Smoke… and it likely weighed at least a hundred pounds in total…

"What…" Robin started.

"Is…" Jinx continued.

"… **THAT**?" Zero concluded with a startled yelp.

Their eyes were wide as the tops of coffee-mugs and they were all three slack-jawed and gaping-mouthed.

"Friends… Titans… countrymen… lend me your ears, for I give to you…" He cleared his throat loudly and one could almost imagine the theme music from '_2001: A Space Odyssey'_ playing in the background. "My latest piece of fine ordinance… the '_Advanced Sniping Super Killer Instrument of Constantly Kicking Evil Rump'_… or…" He paused dramatically. "… The** A.S.S.K.I.C.K.E.R**."

Everyone sweatdropped heavily, twitched erratically for a few seconds, then faceplanted anime-style right onto the floor with a 'thump.'

"Heh. Say hello to my little, yet ludicrously large, amigo… Myntull might be a tough walnut to crack, but now I've got…" he picked the gun up and cocked it. "… A nutcracker."

"It looks very…" Sub-Zero struggled for a word. "Eh… potent."

"Potentially potent, yes." Smoke said with a nod. "I haven't tested it yet…"

"It's… um… huge…" Jinx said, unable to vocalize anything more eloquent.

"I know; it's gigantic. That's why I took the liberty of making it portable… it unfolds into combat-ready mode at the press of a button." He laughed.

He smiled and continued his explanation. "I based its design on the schematics of a World War 2 anti-tank rifle but integrated one of Cy's computer systems into its scope. I also modified it with a much longer barrel and a heavier frame, and based its visual outside appearance on a seventeenth century musket."

Robin groaned. "And I thought I was the one with a gadget obsession."

"Hey, I ain't obsessed!"

A long pause in which the chirping of crickets could be heard.

"Okay… maybe a little. But still, at least I had a good reason to build this thing. Believe me: I couldn't kill Myntull before, but… when I hit him with this baby, he's going down."

"It's not that you didn't have good reason, Mate…" Zero said. "It's just that… I think you enjoy your work a bit too much."

* * *

Beast Boy was changing shapes in front of a mirror, practicing those that might be useful during the imminent battle that they were about to be part of. 

First, he took a deep breath and changed into an African lion, snapping his jaws together with powerful clicks and pawing the carpet with his sharp claws. After waving his tufted tail about a few times, he changed again, this time into a large swamp alligator. He wagged his scaly tail and snapped his long snout again, much like before. He changed again; he was now a rhinoceros. He swung his horn around and stomped hard enough to make the ground shake. He changed back into his normal form and sighed, sitting in front of the mirror.

Terra, sitting nearby was tightening her pair of bluish goggles over her head and looking at him with concern. "… Is something wrong…?" She asked hesitantly.

"Nah, nothing's wrong. It's just that…" He stopped abruptly.

Terra raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "Just that… what?"

He looked around and scratched the back of his head. "Well… I'm worried."

"About what? We can take those creeps anytime we—"

"Not about them." Beast Boy interrupted. "About… well… you."

Terra dropped the hairbrush she was holding. "… Huh? Me…?"

"If you get hurt in all this stuff that's going to be happening, I…" His green eyes, usually alight and not particularly worried suddenly seemed to be weighted down with… something. "I don't think I could lose you again."

"You won't… and you never lost me in the first place." Terra said quickly, putting a hand on his shoulder. "I mean, yeah I was a statue and all, but… I was still here."

"… Terra, I…"

"Yeah…?"

Beast Boy almost seemed to say something but grinned and stopped short. Instead, he suddenly pointed over her shoulder. "Hey, what's that?"

She blinked. Turning her head, she saw nothing. "Huh? What's wha-?"

Before she could finish, he took advantage of the situation and gave her a quick peck of a kiss on the cheek, causing her to jump slightly, startled.

He blushed heavily. "Sorry… I just had to do it."

She also flushed deeply in response and said softly. "Well… that's okay." She paused and smiled, batting an eyelash. "So did I."

"… What?"

Abruptly she tackled him to the ground and kissed him on the lips.

* * *

Raven was in the middle of meditating, chanting softly to herself in her dimly-lit room, with only a small circle of candles set down upon stacks of books. If she was going to be ready for Slade and Myntull, then she needed to be absolutely at her best. 

However, this wasn't the only reason she was meditating. She was trying to purge her mind of something… something she'd seen just the day before, in Smoke's mind. When she'd read his mind, scanned his heart, sensed his soul… she'd seen things… things she would of much rather not seen.

In the process of sensing whether or not any of Smoke's goodness and sanity was left in his berserk body, she'd also accidentally tapped into something more: his memories. She shuddered lightly, covering herself with her cloak, as she envisioned his memory of the first time he'd lost control.

She'd seen it all, through his eyes, and felt every ounce of agony, confusion, and fear he'd experienced.

* * *

Waking up strapped to a table, but otherwise fine, Smoke had been a bit stunned. For a little while, nothing had happened. He tried to break free, but to no avail… he was strapped down with massive metal bolts that were nigh unbreakable. Finally, he slumped back onto his back and tried to think… but he noticed something strange. 

Lights… shimmering lights in his eyes. Rather like when one sees a bright light and little spots of color appear in his vision briefly… but… this was not just spots; it was his entire line of sight. Red. Shimmering, rosy, bloody red… covering everything he saw.

Alarmed, he tried to close his eyes but still saw lights. This time, the blackness that came over him when he shut his eyes was dotted with glinting white pinpoints, like stars or diamonds in the night.

The lights intensified; his head spun. Everything… moving, turning, distorting and all covered in that deep crimson red. He heard ringing and whispers in his ears, nonsensical babble coming from some sourceless, disembodied voices.

He sweated horribly, with feverish chills, while his head ached and continued spinning. He laughed for no apparent reason, a laugh he couldn't refuse or hold in. But this quickly gave way to screaming, then moaning, then sobbing, then a dark, bitter chuckling… and then silence.

And that's when all Hell broke loose. Pain like he'd never felt before and would never feel again was erupting through his body; something dark was taking hold. Unexplainable and terrible, he writhed under a shadowy sensation that was washing over him.

Hatred.

Anger.

Maddened, sadistic delight.

Lust.

Jealousy.

All these and more, all the base, animalistic urges and emotions that mankind was plagued by erupted within him at once and he had only one thought. Fight. Kill. Destroy.

He screamed one last time before he was overcome completely, not just because he was in pain. But also, what alarmed him the most was that…

… He was starting to like it.

And then, everything went red.

* * *

After much meditation, Raven had finally managed to get the experience out of her head. Her pity on Smoke had always existed, but never before had it reached such heights… 

She got up, made sure she was ready, and set off to join the others.

* * *

Cyborg was making some last minutes checks on the T-Car. Full gas tank? Check. Washed? Check. Buffed counterclockwise? Check. Pimpin'? Double check. 

Closing the hood and wiping his head with a towel, he sighed contentedly. He tossed the towel aside, turning around to his left. He looked over to the other side of the garage where Blackfire was watching Smoke toss some extra shells into the roof-top compartment where the punt gun was hidden. He closed the hidden compartment and climbed down.

Smoke opened up the back door of the humvee, tossing in several large crates of ammo along with all his guns. His two revolvers, his shotgun, his sniper rifle, his chainsaw, a big bundle of TNT, and his latest addition: his Anti-Tank rifle, which he had elected just to call his _'siege gun'_ since the other Titans weren't so hot on the name 'A.S.S.K.I.C.K.E.R.'

All this, along with a sack of first-aid supplies, several bundles of dynamite, and an extra large bag of Teriyaki-flavored beef jerky (that he had declared, "For the road") filled up the entire back end of the truck. He slammed the rear door shut and locked it.

By this time, all the other Titans had filed into the garage.

"Okay… remember the plan." Robin reminded his teammates. "Smoke and Blackfire will lead in the Desperado. We'll follow in the T-Car. Sub-Zero, Jinx, and Terra will bring up the rear, Sub-Zero and Jinx on ice and Terra on a boulder." He took a deep breath and looked around slowly, scanning the Teen Titans.

"Is everybody ready?" He asked.

"As ready as we'll ever be." Zero said.

"Good."

**_A Couple Of Hours Later, In Slade's Lair…_**

A brain bobbed grotesquely in a massive, cylindrical tank filled with churning, frothing blue liquid, giving off tufts of white foam and large, glinting bubbles. The room it was in was a large, elaborate laboratory (say that five times fast!) filled with all manner of computers, monitor screens, cameras, tools, switches, levers, gears, and lights. Unlike the rest of Slade's lair, which was perpetually dark and grungy, this place was brightly lit and spotless, the highly polished metal walls reflecting the wash of fluorescent lights that bombarded it.

With a loud beeping noise, the door to the room slid smoothly open with a whoosh of air. In stepped none other than Slade, still just as ominous right down to his boots.

"They're on their way Doctor. I trust your repairs on Project: Resurrection have been completed…?"

A large screen emerged fluidly from the ceiling; the lights dimmed and a picture appeared on the screen.

A large… no… an utterly massive silhouette, sporting wings, tail, and a huge horn. It walked around on all fours, making sounds that were somewhat like the roar of a lion, the hiss of a snake, and the trumpeting of an elephant, all mixed together… it almost sent a shiver down even Slade's spine.

Slade walked over to a small metal table in the corner of the lab, and viewed a small collection of glass statues placed on it. There were thirteen in all, large and very lifelike… the ten Teen Titans, Slade, Myntull… and a very large one with a small cloth thrown over it. He grouped the cloth covered one with the one of Sub-Zero, the one of Robin with the one of him, and the rest in a little group on their own.

"Good. Have it waiting for Sub-Zero when they arrive. Your O.R.C.S. will take care of the other Titans, but Robin…" His eye grew intensely cold and piercing. "… Leave him to me. What of the prototype…? Smoke?"

As if to answer, the human brain flashed with green energy for a minute. The lab was neurologically linked with Myntull, so it responded to his very thoughts. When the brain glowed, the table sprouted a small metal tentacle with a clawed hand on the end. It moved the small glass statues of Myntull and Smoke side-by-side, and then…

**_SMASH_**!

It pounded the statue of Smoke with its fist, shattering it. Slade got the message loud and clear.

"Understood."

* * *

"Okay… everybody be on your guard. This place isn't safe…" Robin said, jaw set and frowning as he stepped around a corner in Slade's dark, dingy hideout. 

"Tell me about it." Zero sniffed, eyeing a broken pipe in the wall that was spewing hot steam. "… Damn! When was the last time this place passed a safety inspection?"

"Never." Beast Boy answered gloomily. "Slade's not exactly a safety-oriented person, after all."

"Except when it comes to himself." Starfire pointed out. "He has most likely set this entire location with traps…"

"(Ca-click) That's fine with me." Smoke growled. "I've got some big-time payback in store for that bastard. And any property damage I can cause on the way is just icing on the cake."

"Speaking of icing…" Zero hissed. "I rather think that Myntull would make a nice frozen sculpture in my room."

"Nah. Too ugly for a statue." Smoke said with a shake of his head. "Now, maybe as a new target for my shooting gallery… I think I could work with that."

"I hate to interrupt, but…" Jinx paused. "… Does… anyone hear that…?"

At this remark, everyone present stopped dead in their tracks and listened, straining their ears to try and pick up the slightest thing that might be out-of-the-ordinary.

The machinery, including whirring conveyer-belts, turning gears, and churning vats, made a myriad of disconcerting noises… it was unnerving; the difference between what might be either a pumping piston or the footsteps of an approaching attacker was nonexistent.

"Let's keep moving." Raven advised, pulling her blue hood down a little further over her face. "Even if something **is** out there…" She motioned to the pitch darkness surrounding the walkway they were on. "… It'll be harder for him, her, or it to hit moving targets."

"She's right." Cy nodded. "And in the meantime…" He flipped open the small control panel in his right arm and brought up a radar screen. "… I'll scan for anything that moves. If it's alive, then I'll pick it up."

They walked on, speeding up just a little every time they heard a noise. Large crashes of working machinery and the rumble of thunder outside (it had started raining on their way here.) echoed throughout the dark. The path they took twisted and turned every several feet, never going in one direction for too long… but there were no forks or splits in the path; it was just one, long stretch of walking.

"I don't get it. Nothing's attacked us yet." Robin said with a furrowed brow. "I mean… surely they know we're coming…"

"I'm not picking anything up." Cy confirmed with a glance at his radar. "Maybe we still have the element of surprise."

"I'm getting a bad feeling about this…" Raven murmured, her eyes cutting all about.

They kept on still, unnerved by the lack of dangers they experienced. No traps, no guards, no… nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch.

But… unfortunately, all good things must come to an end; so it was with their luck… and Sub-Zero was the first to go, though the others followed very quickly.

As they walked, the knight in question never noticed a small wire on the walkway… until it was too late. He stepped on it, triggering a sudden trap. The floor literally opened up beneath him and swallowed him up into darkness quicker than he could so much as gasp.

Before they could even react, however, the same thing happened to both Star and Black, who had been standing next to each other. They vanished with a pair of muffled screams.

Then, mere seconds later, it happened again… and this time, both Robin and Jinx went tumbling down separate paths into the shadows, leaving the others on their own.

And yet again, Smoke went down into the depths of Slade's lair with an angry yell. The floor slammed shut again after he'd fallen.

When all this had happened, the remaining Titans could only stare at each other stunned. Their numbers had been lowered from ten to four in a matter of twenty seconds.

"This isn't good." Terra squeaked, looking afraid.

"You really think so…?" Raven snapped sarcastically.

Terra's eyes flashed yellow and she prepared to retort before Cyborg stepped between the two. "Okay, look!" He bellowed angrily. "We already lost over half our friends, we do NOT need to lose another two! So calm down and stop fighting because we're never going to get out of here if we don't work together."

They both looked away and went silent. Beast Boy plopped down on the ground and put his face in his hands.

"Oh man…" He groaned. "Could this be any worse?"

There was a long pause in which nothing but the banging and clanging of distant machines could be heard. The silence was suffocating…

**(Beep… Beep… Beep…)**

Everyone snapped their heads up, looking around for the source of the strange noise. They all heard it: muffled beeping. Suddenly, a look of horrified comprehension dawned on Cyborg's face. Raven noticed this.

"Uh… Cyborg? Is there something we should know…?" She asked hesitantly.

"Yeah." He said, face set. He opened up the panel in his arm, revealing the radar screen… now swarming with flashing red dots.

"We're in trouble."

_**Okay, I was wrong. This isn't the final chapter, but it's half of it. It was just getting so long that I decided to cut it off here and finish it next chapter, which will hopefully be up soon. It's obvious that the villains have plans for some of the Titans in particular.**_

_**Adios 'till next time.**_

_**--Count Le Madphantom…**_


	29. Chapter TwentyEight

_Disclaimer: Yo no poseo el Teen Titans. (I do not own the Teen Titans.)_

_**Gunsmoke And Black Roses—Chapter Twenty-Eight **_

_**HIGH NOON-Part Two**_

Jinx jerked awake with a muffled cry, heart pounding. Falling… she remembered falling, and… strangely, she didn't seem to be hurt. Her vision blurred, though in didn't matter because she was in total darkness, and her ears were ringing with the rapid descent she'd experience.

Sitting up and trying to calm herself, she took some deep breaths and attempted to slow her heartbeat back to normal. It thumped rapidly, badly startled from the huge plunge… but what had happened? The floor had just opened up and… boom, she was here. Sheesh… It had all happened so fast…

"Hahahahah…" A soft laugh came from some far corner of the pitch-black distance, echoing out across the space in which Jinx was standing; it was agonizing to hear and almost painfully startling.

Wheeling around to face the direction from which the noise had come, she balled up her fists and charged up a couple of hexes, eyes flashing pink with dark energy. Her feline eyes, shimmering with rose tint in the dark, darted nervously around her shadowy environment in an attempt to locate the source of the airy laughter.

"Wh-who's there…?" She demanded, her voice echoing all around the place.

As suddenly as it had started, the laughter died off, leaving the dark pit she was in silent as a grave. She shivered a little, uncomfortable with the situation.

"I… I know someone's there! I can hear you!" She hissed, hiding her nervousness. "Who are you?"

She felt something whoosh behind her, causing a gust of cold air to run across her shoulders. She gasped and whipped around looking badly startled; she saw nothing that would've caused the gust of air. Then, something tapped her on the shoulder, but once again, she saw nothing when she turned around.

The laughter started again, loud and cackling like some sort've banshee… except that it was masculine, as though a man was doing the laughing in question.

Jinx, already rattled by recent events, screamed and loosed several hexes in the general direction the laughter was echoing from. She heard a few muffled zaps, but nothing that indicated she'd hit anything. The hextress flung several more bad-luck spells but with no more results than the first time. Breathing hard, she stumbled back, looking around desperately for something to attack; still, there was nothing there..

"… (Tsk, tsk, tsk.) Jinx, my dear, you really should be more careful, shooting off hexes aimlessly. You never know whom your opponent might be…"

Jinx knew this voice. She couldn't… place it, not quite, but she knew it from somewhere.

"Dammit! Who's there? TELL ME!" She screamed, stamping one of her heels against the ground. But this gesture hurt nothing but the ground, and was pointless in and of itself; it made her feel even more helpless to the situation.

Her only answer was another peal of laughter. But it was not like the loud, shrieking cackle of before. This time it was just… a chuckle, a low chortling sound.

"Now, m'dear… surely you haven't forgotten me so soon?"

And as a pair of eyes flashed bloody red in the darkness, she gasped and stumbled back, tripping over a jagged rock and falling on the ground. She groaned, and rubbed her leg, staring wide-eyed at the spot where the shimmering eyes had been.

"Heheheheh. You remember me, don't you…?" The voice, cruelly familiar and mockingly affectionate, echoed from blackness. "Of course you do. After all… not many youngsters can forget…" there was a sudden sweeping sound, as the flowing of robes over hard, rocky ground. "… Their teacher."

At that moment, realization hit Jinx like an eighteen-wheeler over an armadillo. Flashing angrily with dark energy, her feline eyes crackled with pink fire. "… You…! Blood!"

Sure enough, she was correct. The man in question strode out into the dim light Jinx stood in, just as tall and wickedly elegant looking in his white-gold-and-black robes as ever. He sneered and rolled his piercing eyes in a rather haughty manner. "Humph. That's BROTHER Blood to you, missy. But you should be thanking me… I've come to reunite you with a couple of long-lost friends…"

At these words, two more sets of eyes, both very beady but one larger than the other, glared red from the darkness. Two more sets of laughter joined Brother Blood's chuckle, a deep booming guffaw and a small, impish cackling.

* * *

"This is bad… very bad..." Sub-Zero mused sadly to himself as he dusted off his white clothes as best as he could. He had no idea where he'd landed, but… he was far away from his friends and that's what worried him. He hoped they weren't in trouble; he'd never forgive himself nor Slade nor Myntull or anyone else… If anything happened to them, especially Jinx.

Squinting, he managed to make out the cavern around him… it was enormous, like a huge cave. Right in the middle of the whole thing was a massive pool of water… or more accurately, a subterranean lake. The light shone in from a large crater-shaped hole in the ceiling, like moonlight. The way it reflected off the water gave the cave a certain unreality and ethereality.

Though the knight was accustomed to cold, he still shivered. The temperature was not to blame, however… it was more just a feeling of foreboding. Like something was about to happen.

'If I'm gonna get outta here…' Zero reasoned mentally. '… Then I better get to looking for an exit.'

But unbeknownst to the young man, something strange was taking place deep within that lake. A large metallic grating, made to cover a huge underwater cavern, was slowly cranking open. Air bubbles…. A swarm of them, as though a giant something was breathing in that dark cavern… were pouring out of the opening.

As Sub-Zero surveyed his surroundings, pulling a small flask of rum from his belt and muttering to himself as he did so, he was far too absorbed in his musings to notice the rippling of the lake's surface.

He unscrewed the cap from the flask and took a long swig, trying to calm himself. He gulped the rum down and wiped his mouth on his cape with a satisfied sigh, pocketing the flask in his belt again. The rippling grew to a great churning and foaming, but he still didn't notice for he was too far away.

'Think, Zero, think!' He urged himself mentally. 'They trapped me down here for a reason… I'm sure of it. But… why…?'

He got his answer when the lake let out a sudden geyser of water, hissing with enough volume to elicit a startled jump from the knight. He turned slowly around, staring incredulously at the sight. The water bubbled and sizzled, and something was cutting a large 'V' shape through the water as it came at the shore…

Something… was coming up.

Zero shook with shock and stumbled back as he saw the shape coming up. As the thing leaving the wake in the water neared closer, a huge spike that jutted up from the water like a rock pillar came progressively higher up out of the water. It was… a horn!

Then, like a giant cannonball, the thing shot up out of the water too fast for him to follow, splashing out a tidal wave of water as it did so. But a second later, he looked up and saw a titanic shadow silhouetted against the opening in the ceiling. A long snaky tail, writhing like a serpent, and two awful wings flapping at high speed like some huge, ghastly bat. The spike was a horn, fixed atop a big ugly head and four thick legs with clawed feet lashed through the air and kicked about.

Then, like a living missile, it shot down at the ground and landed with an explosion of rocky fragments and thick, choking dust. The ground trembled under its footfall and the lake splashed from the sheer impact nearby. The thing was enormous, as big as Zero's ship.

"No… dragon…?" Zero whispered. He shook his head, intensely stunned.

It was a dragon, just like before. In fact, it was THE dragon from before. How he knew it was, or how Myntull had gotten it, he didn't know… it really didn't matter; what mattered was that he was in deep trouble!

It was different now. Its bony body had been reconstructed but now featured shiny metallic over-armor and all manner of giant pipes, wires, and vents. Its rib cage, no longer hollow, now contained what looked like a giant, pulsing motor that rumbled like Smoke's truck to the 10th degree. All around this massive motor, there were turning gears and pistons, along with a long row of alternately opening and closing valves.

It's head was the same, but the while the bottom jaw remained bone, the top part of the head including the snout, top jaw, and horn, were encased in a helmet-like metal armor. The horn, in particular, had been sharpened and curved into a scimitar-esque shape, making the overall creature much more threatening and evil-looking.

The four legs that the dragon stood on were still bone, but covered by a series of thick metal bands, each encrusted with studded spikes and flashing light panels. Its feet were now equipped with tank treads so that it could either walk or roll, whichever was needed.

Its huge wings had been covered in metal completely, with jagged wings that looked a lot like Myntull's except much bigger. They now sported large airplane-style turbines along the edges that whirred threateningly, spewing noxious gasses from rusted exhaust pipes.

Lastly, the dragon's tail was modified so that the natural bone drill on the tip had been replaced by an industrial mining drill made from what looked to be laser-etched steel with a thin layer of reinforced diamond coating. The tail itself was bone like before, but had numerous antennae and wires protruding from it.

Zero, numb with shock, stood there shakily and stared in utter disbelief. This couldn't be happening! "No…" He groaned croakily. "I… I don't believe it! They rebuilt him!"

It was like some sort of bad joke. He'd defeated the Death Dragon before, but now it was back. How many times must this thing be defeated…? Sub-Zero had heard the phrase, _'Blast from the past'_, but this was ridiculous!

"Oh God… Not again…"

* * *

Robin, thankfully, hadn't been knocked out from the fall. But that didn't mean that it hadn't hurt like a mug. The Boy Wonder groaned and rubbed his sore back, wiping small pebbles from his cape and grumbling darkly.

Getting up and looking around, he saw that he was surrounded on all sides by machinery and a sort've smoky haze, as though he were in some large, dimly-lit factory. He sighed to himself. "Great. Just great. Looks like we're separated in enemy territory… so much for the element of surprise."

His thoughts were abruptly ended by a powerful blow to the head, courtesy of a thrown chunk of cement. With a muffled shout of pain, he was tossed against a wall as his body spun in midair from the force of the blow.

"Oh, I wouldn't say all that. The element of surprise is working quite well for me."

Robin scrambled to his feet, forcing himself to ignore the throbbing in his head. He recognized the voice instantly; it the one he heard within his nightmares, the dark, dour, mockingly polite sneer.

"…Slade…" It wasn't so much surprised or angry as it was satisfied. "I found you again."

"No, Robin. I found you." The voice from the shadows countered.

"Why not come out and face me like man, so we can settle all this once and for all?" Robin demanded with a slight trace of grim amusement. "Afraid of a boy…?"

Laughter erupted from the shadows, seeming to come from absolutely everywhere at once. There, to the left of a large stack of metal barrels… no, behind that huge, turning gear, it faded and appeared just to the right near a large pipeline in the wall; it then moved to the ceiling, echoing down from above. The voice of Slade was everywhere.

"Poor Robin. Only too eager to fight, as always…" There was a moment's silence. "Hm… I like that in an opponent."

Without warning, the dim area was lit up by a wash of red light, bathing the area in a Hellish glow.

And there, barely a dozen feet in front of Robin stood none other than Slade himself.

"The clock is ticking, Robin…" Slade's one unhidden eye narrowed to a slit, venomous and hateful. "… Shall we begin…?"

* * *

Starfire awoke with a small moan and shielded herself from the uncomfortably bright light shining in her face. She stayed like this for several minutes, until her eyes had become used to it, then she dared to crack them open, revealing thin lines of emerald green. She blinked in confusion.

She was caged. And she wasn't the only one in the cage.

"Sister…? Sister!"

Starfire hovered over a few feet to Blackfire, who was slumped in the corner of the large cage, the walls of which seemed to be made of some icky, green goo. She shook her sister lightly by the shoulder and mumbled a few things in Tamaranean.

"Uuuuugh…"

Blackfire's misty gray eyes fluttered open; at first she saw only a blur of wild colors, but then everything sharpened and she saw Star's concerned green eyes blinking in her face. "… What the… Star?"

"Oh, you are unhurt!" Star sighed loudly, going slightly limp in midair with relief. "I thought…"

"Nevermind." Black responded flatly with a shake of her head. "We have to find a way out of… wherever this is."

The cage they were in consisted of a frame made of some strange, highly reflective metal, with a texture like a mirror. The walls of the cage were transparent and made of what looked like green jelly.

Angrily, Blackfire attempted to tackle through the nearest wall. She hit it with a thud, causing it to wobble and stretch as she tried to break through, but a moment later it whipped back into its normal shape and sent her reeling back onto the hard metal floor with a grunt.

Starfire scowled and charged a green energy bolt in each hand, hurling them at the walls at high speed, like a barrage of green lightning. Each one caused an explosion, splattering parts of the walls but never quite penetrating all the way through… the cage simply grew back the blown-away chunks instantaneously.

"We are… trapped." Star moaned, plopping onto the floor and putting her face in her hands.

"Myntull. This is his doing!" Blackfire snarled, punching her palm as her eyes flashed purple.

"You are incorrect. Myntull was merely our informant." A strange new voice echoed about, seemingly through the walls. A pair of Tamaranean heads snapped forward towards the source of the voice, startled badly.

Outside the cage was a simple room with nothing but a single door. The door in question swung open after a few moments, and in stepped two tall figures. Both were huge, bulky creatures covered in what was either armor or metallic skin. Both were red, and with a mismatched pair of arms… one was a normal, albeit clawed, hand but the other was a large clicking pincer, like a crab. They walked on two legs and had small disk-shaped heads with gnashing teeth that seemed too small for their tall, muscular bodies. They lumbered over to the cage and glared in on the prisoners with multiple yellow eyes.

"She is the one, yes?" One of the creatures asked, turning to his compadre.

"Yes… the criminal and her sister." The other said with a twitch of the head that might be taken as a very strange sort of nod-like gesture.

The two girls stared blankly, until they got a good look at their captors. Blackfire's eyes went wider than they'd probably ever been and Starfire just stared, mouth agape and jaw dropped; both of them were too shocked to speak.

"… C-centauri Officers…?" Blackfire stammered hoarsely. "Y-ou… you're…" She couldn't quite get the rest out; she went limp and very pale.

"I demand to know why we are being held captive! We have done nothing wrong!" Starfire screeched, banging angrily on the gelatinous walls, her eyes glowing green and emitting a threatening sizzling noise.

"On the contrary. Your sister is currently a high-priority escapee from our prisons, on account of being wanted for… let's see…" The officer opened a sort've computer panel on his arm with a display including a mugshot of Blackfire and various bits of information written in some bizarre, alien language.

"… One count of grand theft involving a Centauri Moon diamond, two counts of successful escape from our prisons, one count of governmental coup on Tamaran, one count of framing an innocent for a crime, three counts of vandalizing Centauri-Law-Enforcement property, and two counts of resisting arrest with lots of violence."

"Oh, yes…" The second alien officer piped in. "That's quite a substantial list of crimes, and more than enough to merit immediate execution. In fact…" He clicked his pincer ominously. "… We were already preparing for the ceremony when you managed to escape last time."

"No one is going to kill my sister! I am the rightful ruler of Tamaran! I can contact my K'norfka Galfore immediately and have her pardoned; I left him as ruler while I was on Earth!" Star explained hastily.

"Of course you can. But that still doesn't negate the crimes she has committed not involving Tamaran. And besides…" A gurgling laugh grated from the creature's metallic throat. "… I'm sad to inform you that you won't be pardoning anyone, Your Highness."

This took Starfire aback. "… Wh-what do you mean…?"

"That strange and mechanized Earth creature whom you call Myntull has been an invaluable source of information pertaining to our search for the escaped convict Blackfire. But his conditions required that certain other parties be, ah…" His eyes glinted in a disturbing way. "… Terminated."

The other creature continued. "That is why that by exactly midnight Earth time tonight… Princess Koriand'r of Tamaran, AKA Starfire will have died tragically in an explosion while battling her sister, who had finally come to exact revenge once and for all…"

Starfire pressed herself against the wall incredulously and Blackfire began to tremble violently as the creature continued speaking. "We, unfortunately, arrived to late to save her but we managed to arrest the culprit and elected to execute her on-location before she could cause any more damage."

While the two stunned Tamaraneans remained silent with shock in the cage, the two Centuari officers looked at each other and burst into pleased laughter.

* * *

"Cyborg! A little help, please?" Raven demanded exasperatedly from within a tight circle of slowly advancing Orcs and Slade robots. Just when one of the Orcs leapt at her, it was abruptly blown out of the air by a shot from Cy's sonic cannon.

"Sorry, Rae. But I'm in a tight spot myself…" Indeed, he was having a hard time fending of the horde of enemies that had set upon him. The shots form the orcs' plasma rifles and the robots' laser pistols had scorched Cy's metal skin badly, making him look tarnished and burnt. Still, he mowed down wave after wave of them, never backing down.

Beast Boy was faring a bit better, at least. He'd transformed himself into an elephant and was slinging his long trunk and huge tusks around violently, trumpeting loudly to scare them off. Anything that got too close was trampled under huge, green feet.

Raven was probably having the most trouble… she blasted them apart with clouds of crackling black magic, but to no avail. Each enemy defeated seemed to trigger three more in its place. She couldn't see the others for the enemies around her…

Terra floated in midair; perched on a large floating boulder she'd broken off form the cavernous walls of the place. She hurled boulders down like hail, but was hesitant to do so because she had to swerve to avoid gunshots and didn't want to crush her friends by accident…

"We have to run!" She screamed down to Raven and Cyborg. "We don't stand a chance without the others!"

"We can't run; they've got us pinned down!" Raven yelled back up irritably, tossing large piece of machinery at a crowd of robots with her powers, crunching them to bits with a metal screech. "We're trapped…"

* * *

"So… here we are again, prototype. Just like we began."

"Not quite. I've got some new toys and you've been eatin'."

Smoke cocked his new siege gun and pointed it at the metal behemoth in front of him. Myntull had grown indeed…

He was now on tank treads instead of legs, box-shaped with rows of artillery cannons on all sides, speakers built into the top, and a large gatling-turret on top with the brain of the madman mounted at the gun's controls that were wired to connect directly with his mind. He looked like a tank… actually, he was a tank; he was a tank with a mind of its own.

The metal the body was made from had a greenish tint and was shining as though freshly buffed and polished. The treads were black with large spikes protruding from the sides and various antennae and things were mounted on top around his brain. Various pipes and vents spewed nasty exhaust gasses of all kinds of alarming colors: filthy brown, nauseous green, dark black, hazy purple…

The gatling turret his brain was mounted on had twin guns mounted together, each with a dozen barrels with a large crosshair mounted between the two guns for aiming.

"I see you appreciate the new look, prototype. Then again, you've always been partial to new methods of mayhem, haven't you?"

"Shut up!" Smoke growled. "Whether I die here or you die here, it's going to end one way or another. And don't think I'm going down without a fight."

"Dear, dear, prototype. I know all that already. One knows his own creation as he or she knows his or her self… perfectly. And besides…" The gats mounted on his new tank body whirred noisily. "… The fight, I was rather looking forward to, you see…"

"Then let's go, Exhaust breath!"

"Hahahah! The doctor is in!"

* * *

"This is insane!"

Jinx backed away from the two former-friends that were advancing on her: Gizmo and Mammoth.

She glared hatefully at Blood. "You're controlling them!"

"Of course I'm controlling them…" he said as though it were obvious, unabashed by the fact. "… They wouldn't be attacking their best friend otherwise. I must say, it was very good of that Myntull fellow to give me the chance to kill you once and for all."

"I knew it!" The sorceress shrieked. "You're working for them!"

He sighed in a tired manner. "My dear, must you state the painfully obvious?" His eyes flashed red again. "Gizmo! Mammoth! Kill her!"

Mammoth lunged forward with a bellow and Gizmo let fly with a rocket from his backpack-cannon.

Jinx gasped and leapt over Mammoth whilst simultaneously slinging a hex bolt at the rocket, blowing it up in midair. She came down and landed lithely on her feet; she almost attacked Mammoth, but… she hesitated. He was her friend… he couldn't help he was under mind control…

Said brute got up with a grunt and ripped a chunk of rock from the walls, hurling it with a snarl at Jinx, twisting and hurtling through the air fast enough to create a low humming sound. The makeshift projectile hit Jinx hard enough to send her reeling; she thumped and slid across the ground with a scream of pain, a few small droplets of blood spurting from her hairline as the rock nearly broke her skull. She moaned on the ground and lay there helpless with pain.

Through shaky vision, she saw the huge outline of Mammoth advancing on her holding a stalagmite like a war-club, patting the palm of his massive left hand ominously.

She whimpered slightly as she was lifted up in the air by a metallic spider leg protruding from Gizmo's backpack; it squeezed her tightly like some huge awful snake. She couldn't take both of them at once…

As Blood chuckled sinisterly in the background. She shuddered a little and opened her eyes to see Mammoth preparing to cave her head in with the huge stalagmite. She only knew one way out of this; it was hopeless, but… maybe… just maybe…

"G-guys, no… please… don't do this…" She moaned weakly, shaking her throbbing head; blood began to drip just slightly down her forehead "… I'm your friend… remember…?"

"You may as well give up, Jinx. They can't hear a word you're saying; both of them are firmly under my control. For someone so intelligent, Gizmo was surprisingly easy to manipulate. And Mammoth? Well, there's not much there, so… not much effort need be expended." Brother Blood said with a haughty and snide smirk, sneering out the words in a really condescending tone.

Gizmo tightened the grip of his mechanical limbs and Mammoth raised the club above Jinx's already bleeding head.

"No… Mammoth… Gizmo… you don't… remember me…?" She tried again, but their faces remained as expressionless as ever.

"The poor young fools. Why, they think you're dead… they believe you perished in the explosion that burnt that building to the ground; you **should** have if it wasn't for that one little pretty boy who…"

"His name is Sub-Zero…" Jinx hissed icily, cutting him off.

"Whatever. They think that Sub-Zero is to blame for your death, thanks to a little memory modification work on my part. If they knew the truth, they'd be thanking the Teen Titans with open arms for saving you… and turning on me for trying to kill you; I certainly can't have all of that, now can I?"

She narrowed her eyes. "You're sick…"

"Perhaps so. But you're worse off; you're dead." He snapped his fingers. "Kill her! Now!"

Mammoth grunted and swung the stone… but…

He stopped. His huge hands stopped in midair, the stalagmite he held by its point being mere inches from Jinx's face. She was staring at him. Large, watery eyes with their rosy feline pupils staring dead at him unflinchingly; her expression was one of mournful resignation.

And at that moment, something in Mammoth's brain clicked.

Jinx, seeing that something was working, managed to squirm around in the metal spider-leg and look Gizmo dead in the eyes… It had the same effect as it did on Mammoth. His eyes, which had been glowing red, began to flicker to their normal color and his grip loosened a bit.

"I gave you an order, gentlemen… Kill… her…Now…!"

Mammoth lifted the stalagmite again and Jinx moaned. She thought she'd gotten through to him, but…

She closed her eyes and whimpered, so she wouldn't see the heavy slab of rock swinging down upon her head. There was a sound, the hum of something large and heavy swinging through the air. There was a cry of pain.

… But not from Jinx.

When several seconds had passed, she opened her eyes uncertainly and gasped out loud.

There was a large dent in the wall shaped rather oddly like a tall robed man and Brother Blood in a heap below it, knocked out cold. Mammoth dropped the stalagmite and Gizmo's robotic appendages released Jinx. She crumpled to the ground clutching her head with a moan.

"Don't just stand there, dufus! Find something to use as a bandage!" Gizmo barked.

"Uh… Hey, Giz… how'd we get here again?" Mammoth asked dazedly, running over to Brother Blood and tearing off a small strip of cloth from the edges of his robe.

"I don't know! It had something to do with the headmaster; I know that. How is Jinx alive?" he sounded surprised now. "She died… in that fire!"

"And why'd the headmaster wanna kill 'er?" Mammoth grunted in equal confusion.

"… L-lie…" Jinx moaned.

Both of the brainwashed baddies snapped their heads over and stared.

"She's still conscious!" Gizmo squeaked, badly startled. "Hurry up, ya big lug and get that cloth over here!"

Mammoth lumbered over and handed Gizmo the cloth. With a few presses of the buttons on his chest-unit, Gizmo withdrew his mechanical spider legs and stood ground level above Jinx, tying the cloth around her bleeding head like a bandage.

"Uh… Jinx…" Mammoth seemed a bit lost for words. "… You're alive!"

"… Glad to see you haven't lost any of your eloquence…" Jinx sighed heavily.

Mammoth just blinked. "… Huh?"

"How did you survive that fire? And where are we? Why are we here? Why is the headmaster here? Who—" Gizmo questioned rapidly, but Jinx cut him off.

"You've been lied to the whole time." She groaned, sitting up shakily. "The fire didn't kill me, and the Titans didn't cause that fire… Brother Blood did…"

Mammoth was aghast. "Not the headmaster! He wouldn't have…"

"He would and he did." Jinx said grimly. "He tried to have me killed and if Sub-Zero hadn't have saved me—"

"Wait… wait just a minute…" Gizmo's memory put two and two together. "… That white-haired Titan with the sword? _HE_ saved you?"

"Yes. And I'm…" She trailed off.

Mammoth raised an eyebrow. "You're what…?"

Her eyes darted about nervously and she swallowed. "Um… guys… this is… going to come as something of a shock, but…"

She whispered something in Mammoth's ear and Gizmo leaned over to listen.

About thirty seconds of dead silence ensued, and one could almost hear the pin dropping or the crickets chirping. And then…

**_"… YOU'RE WHAT?"  
_**

"I'm… a Titan."

"But… but… but why?" Gizmo stuttered, quite rattled by the sudden news.

"You hate the Titans… don't you?" Mammoth added.

She looked away from them. "I… I hated the Titans, yeah. But… Guys, Sub-Zero saved my life… and he took me in when I had nowhere else to go. But the Titans found out and…" She paused, closing her eyes. "I was so sure they were going to lock me away in some dark prison again, and they were originally going to, but…" She trailed off, moaning and clutching her head.

"But what?" Gizmo asked wide-eyed while Mammoth helped Jinx to her feet.

"Zero, he… he took up for me. He told them not to send me to prison and… they didn't. They just, asked me a bunch of stuff and… well, one thing led to another and…"

"You… joined them…" Mammoth grunted slowly.

"Well… yeah." Jinx said sheepishly. "And besides, if I hadn't then me and Zero would've never started da—" She clapped a hand over her mouth, realizing she'd said too much.

"Never started what?"

"Uh… never mind. Now come on, we have to go help them! Just leave Blood there; he's not going anywhere…"

She started off down the only pathway she saw, a long narrow one in the shadows from which Bro. Blood had emerged suddenly. After going only a few feet, she realized they weren't moving; they just stood there. She turned around and looked at them.

"What are you waiting for? Come on; they need help!" Still, they didn't move.

"… Jinx…. They're the Titans… we can't help them…" Mammoth grunted. "I mean… They're…" He trailed off uncertainly.

"Yeah! And besides, they don't want our help." Gizmo sneered, hovering in midair with his jetpack.

She looked at both of them incredulously, eyes going from one to the other. "But… fine! Fine! I'll go myself!" She snapped. "… I thought you guys were better than that…" And she took off running into the dark, fading rapidly from view.

Mammoth and Gizmo were left alone, staring into the shadows. They looked at each other bemusedly… and then took off running after her.

"Jinx, hang on! We'll help!"

"We're coming! Don't leave us here…"

* * *

"You mother fu—!" Sub-Zero was cut-off mid-obscenity by an explosive beam spewed forth from the mechanized Death Dragon's mouth; apparently, they'd replaced the natural fire-breath or ice-breath with some sort of high-powered beam weapon.

He got up groaning from a pile of charred rocks, shaking himself off a bit. This was definitely not going well… the monster was much more powerful than before.

With a metallic screech, the creature let fly with missiles from cannons mounted to the turbines on its wings. Sub-Zero reflexively hurled several ice rays simultaneously, freezing the missiles in midair; they dropped to the ground… but still exploded, knocking him back with a grunt.

"Okay… you want to play rough? Let's play rough." Zero muttered darkly to himself, removing his warhammer from its case on his back. He stumbled to his feet and stared the creature in the eye…

He dashed forward suddenly, lifting the hammer up with one hand and firing off several freeze rays from his other hand; the freeze rays formed platforms of ice in midair and he leapt along them before they tumbled to the ground. Leaping off the highest one, he came down on the creature's metal head-armor with his war hammer. There was an awful smashing, like the gnarling and bending of metal, and the dragon roared in pain as Zero fell back down to the ground.

The creature shook its head violently, and Sub-Zero saw, with grim satisfaction, that there was a large dent in its head shaped like his hammer. The dragon roared again, opening its mouth and letting fly with another beam from within. Sub-Zero raised his shield in the hand opposite his big hammer, and it blocked the beam; unfortunately, though, it still exploded, so Zero was still knocked to the ground.

With a massive grunt, the creature snorted plumes of gas and steam from its nostrils and, with a flapping of wings that bombarded the entire area with high winds, it took to the air.

It flew about, writhing and squirming erratically in midair like a flying serpent. Then, with a deafening, motor-like whirr, it cranked up the steel drill on its tail and started spinning downwards to earth in an attempt to impale Sub-Zero. The knight gasped and dashed frantically towards the lake in an attempt to take cover. Just in time to avoid certain death under a 300-ton monster, he jumped high up into the air and, with a quick somersault, dove into the water.

The creature froze in midair above the surface of the water, snarling angrily. It leered at the lake, its glowing eyes nearly sparking with rage. But out of nowhere, the waters began to move and grow rough; then, an entire column of whirling, twisting water spurted up from a wild whirlpool and knocked the dragon out of the air with a shriek of agony. It twitched and fluttered in midair for a few seconds, and then it went falling into the water with enough force to create a massive tidal wave that soaked the entire subterranean chamber.

A few moments later, Sub-Zero crawled out of the water chuckling; he was wet but otherwise unhurt. "Heheheh. You see?" He yelled at the water. "… I've learned some new tricks, too."

His celebration was cut short as another energy beam broke the surface of the water and blasted Zero point-blank in the chest, sending him flying through the air with a scream and thudding against a wall; he slid off slowly with a loud groan of pain.

As his vision swirled, he groaned and shook his head. The dragon crawled out of the water; a long, forked tongue slithered from its mouth and fluttered sinisterly in the air, dripping with filthy saliva and sizzling greenish-yellow venom.

'I'm done for…' Zero groaned mentally, closing his eyes from exhaustion. He could hear the creature's footfalls on the ground, ringing in his ears and shaking the ground beneath him forcefully. It roared evilly as it approached.

But the next thing Zero heard was the shot of some sort of weapon and the creature screeching wildly along with the sound of a loud explosion. Then, there was a giant thud as the monster fell to the ground; the whole chamber shook and trembled violently and uncontrollably.

Surprised, Zero sat up groggily and opened his eyes… and saw the last person he'd expected to see, at all.

"What the…?"

He was abruptly snatched up and carried off to a dark corner of the chamber in pair of large, burly arms. Then, his carrier laid him down behind a large slab of stone.

"Stay here." He grunted deeply.

And with that, the huge form dashed back out the cavernous battlefield, where the dragon was snarling and pulling itself back up for another round.

"No… can't be…" Zero murmured, rubbing his bleary eyes. But then, a second later, another form came dashing behind the rock where the other had laid him, and he recognized this one; it was a tall slender outline he knew very, very well…

"Zero! You're hurt!"

"… Jinx…? How did you…?"

"Mammoth bashed through the wall and Gizmo distracted it with a rocket." She said in a nonplussed manner, as though it were simple and obvious. "Oh, are you okay? It shot you!"

He shook his head and pulled himself up to a full sitting position, looking into Jinx's eyes. "No. I'll be okay… I just need a breather." His crimson eyes widened, puzzled with the whole situation. "Mammoth and Gizmo… they're…"

"On our side." Jinx finished simply.

"They tried to kill you! What makes you think we can trust them?" The knight asked her anxiously.

"No! They didn't try to kill me; Brother Blood tried to kill me. They were brainwashed… they couldn't help it…" She insisted in their defense.

"… If you say so." He said softly. "… But they're probably still pissed at me; they'll try to—"

"They'll try nothing." She said firmly, grabbing him by the armor and gently lowering him back down to a lying position. "They're with us now… I think…" She shook her head. "Look, you stay here; we'll fight the dragon."

"The Hell I am!" Zero protested, sitting back up. Jinx flinched back, startled. "I'm sorry… It's just… Jinx, I usually do whatever you tell me, but I'm not letting the three of you take that thing on by yourselves; I'm coming, too."

With that, he leapt up and ran back out from behind the rock and into the fray. Jinx sighed deeply and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "Stubborn boys." And went off after him.

Mammoth, meanwhile, was slinging the dragon around by the tail like a toy while Gizmo peppered it with rockets. The thing shrieked in anger and whirred the drill on its tail, which Mammoth avoided but just barely.

"We could use some help here!" He bellowed.

"I got your back, big guy." Zero said. "I guess…"

And with that, Zero drew his sword with a whoosh of white, frosty mist. He dashed up to the spot that Gizmo was hovering above.

"Hey, Glitch!"

"Gizmo." Jinx reminded, coming up behind him.

"Uh… right… Gizmo! Can you give me a lift…?"

Gizmo pressed a few buttons on his control pack and extended a long metal tentacle; Zero leapt upon it and it lifted him up like a platform.

"Thanks!" He yelled to the pint-size genius, who just shrugged and nodded whilst he continued to blast the dragon with rockets from a distance.

With a war cry, Sub-Zero leapt off the tentacle and flew through the air like a bullet; he landed on the dragon's head with a thump and grabbed onto its horn. He brandished his sword with a flourish, and a few slices later, the horn was rolling on the ground, completely severed. The ragged stump, where the horn had been, exposed circuitry and wires.

"Gizmo! Fire in there!" Jinx shouted, pointing to the stump.

"Will do!" He squeaked, pulling down his goggles. Inside his eyewear, a targeting crosshair appeared and locked onto the dragons snapping mouth and jerking head. It blinked and read 'TARGET LOCKED ON; FIRE AT WILL.'

"Gotcha!" Gizmo cackled, firing off the rocket from his back-cannon. It whizzed through the air like a flying train and curved downwards in a wicked arch, flying down into the exposed stump.

"Hey, Titan Boy!" Mammoth yelled, letting go of the frantic dragon's tail. "Jump; she's gonna blow!"

Zero needed no second bidding. He jumped down and rolled along the ground stopping to where Jinx was standing and hurling hexes at the dragon's feet, thus keeping it too tripped up to turn and attack Mammoth.

The broken horn began to smoke and burn…

Mammoth grabbed the thing's tail again with a grunt and heaved mightily; with one broad motion, he lifted the monster into the air and hurled it into the lake, then broke into a run towards Jinx and Sub-Zero. Gizmo raised his goggles again and flew towards them also.

The lake churned and spat up water, bubbling madly the whole time, as an explosion occurred beneath it; mechanical bits and pieces of bone were flying up from the water, burnt and broken. The unlikely quartet standing down on the ground cheered.

"Yes! We did it!" Jinx turned around, smiling like the Cheshire cat. But she gasped and stared at what she saw.

Mammoth and Gizmo were standing on one side of her looking edgy and uncomfortable. Sub-Zero was on the other side with his sword drawn, eyeing the pair warily.

"Of for the love of—" Jinx hissed to herself in intense frustration. "Would you two cut it out? We're on… the same… side." She spat the words out slowly. Then, she quickly rounded on Zero. "And Zero! I'm surprised at you! They're my friends too, y'know!"

There was a long moment of awkward silence as Jinx fumed, Mammoth and Gizmo cowered, and Zero rubbed the back of his head guiltily. Then, Zero sheathed Eviglasere with a small click and walked over to the other two.

"Uh…Ahem… Look. I know we kinda got off to a bad start."

Crickets chirped…

"But… look, I, uh… I appreciate the help. I couldn't have done it without you guys… or Jinx."

They looked at each other. Then Mammoth grunted and bellowed: "If Jinx is on your side, then…." He sighed heavily; this seemed to be very difficult for him to say. "Then… I…. I guess we are too." He grumbled.

"And besides, you knocked out the headmaster with a stalagmite. I'm pretty sure that's secure grounds for an expulsion." Gizmo chirped dryly.

Jinx smiled and looked to Zero, who grinned lopsidedly back at her. "Well, I… I guess we better go find the others."

Suddenly, the cavern shook violently; the walls crumbled, and the lake splashed. Smoke was rising from the walls and both the ground and ceiling were cracking unnervingly.

"Wh-what's happening?" Zero stammered with a yelp.

"It's the explosion; it's damaged something structural! This place is coming down!" Gizmo piped up urgently.

"RUN!" Jinx screamed.

They took off towards the manmade exit Mammoth had made on his way in…

* * *

"Face it, Robin. I'm always one step ahead of you!" Slade rumbled, punching the boy wonder hard enough to make him stumble and fall.

Robin leapt up off the ground in time to avoid Slade's boot crushing his skull. He whipped around with his Bo Staff and sent Slade reeling with a blow to the head. "No one stays ahead forever, Slade."

The masked villain roared and charged with his shoulder, intending to knock Robin off the dimly lit balcony they were standing on. Any drop off would result in a several hundred foot fall; there was only one path leading off and Slade was making sure Robin didn't go there.

Robin dodged nimbly by leaping over Slade and landing behind him; Slade had to stop quickly to avoid going over the edge himself. Slade retaliated by ripping a segment of pipe off the railing of the balcony and hurling it at Robin's head. The Boy Wonder stopped it with a birdirang, which whirled back to his hand once it had taken out the pipe.

"One of us has to win, Slade…" Robin growled, narrowing his masked eyes. "… This can't go on for eternity."

"Then you should run." Slade hissed mockingly. "After all… I'm not losing to you, and what would you have us do? Fight here for all eternity until Judgment Day itself?"

Robin glowered, drawing a boomerang. "No Slade. Judgment is on its way now." And with that, he hurled the boomerang with a grunt.

Slade ducked under the boomerang, but stood up too soon, because it nailed him in the head on the way back to Robin's fist. "Oof!"

The Boy Wonder took advantage of this turn of events, pouncing on Slade with staff brandished; he beat him ruthlessly with it until Slade finally kicked him off and several feet away.

"Foolish boy! You will die in this place! You and your pathetic little ragtag group. The prototype is being dealt with by Myntull as we speak, your little freeze-machine friend is digesting in a mechanical dragon belly right about now, your precious Starfire and her loathsome sister are in law custody, Brother Blood is going to finish off Jinx once and for all…" His eye narrowed evilly. "… And the troops are finishing off the rest!"

"Liar!" Robin shouted back, charging straight at him while twirling his staff. Slade was ready though. He grabbed the staff with his left hand; he brought his right fist into Robin's gut, knocking the air out of him painfully. Then, he kicked him backwards and threw the staff on top of him as he lay on the ground.

"You should know better than to lose your head." Slade scoffed softly. "… It'll be the end of you."

"You're going to lose a lot more than a head, Slade." Robin mumbled, gritting his teeth tightly.

Slade ran at him, intending to finish him off, when Robin fell to the ground, rolled to the side… and stuck out his leg…

Slade's visible eye widened as he tripped over the outstretched leg. He went fumbling forward awkwardly, through a few stacks of barrels and over the railing… and then, finally, into the darkness below; the sound of something being ground up by the large, turning cogs on the machinery echoed upwards noisily.

Robin panted and fell to the ground…

… He'd done it.

… He'd won; after all this time, he'd won.

He put his head in his hand, running gloved fingers through his messy, spiked black hair and sighing with worry. The others were in danger… he had to find them, now.

* * *

If you think World War 2 was something, you should've seen this. Smoke and Myntull were squeezing off rounds at an incredible rate; Myntull fired off his dual gatling turret and peppered the area with a barrage of high-power bullets whilst the cannons on his new tank body spit explosive mortars onto all sides, filling the room with explosions and smoldering craters.

Smoke weaved through the cannon mortars, and returned fire with his siege gun. He was doing something never done before; his and Myntull's bullets were literally knocking each other out of the air before they could hit and cause any real damage… that's how good they were.

"You will die here, prototype!"

Smoke sneered. "Maybe so. But if I do, I'll see you in Hell, Doctor."

Myntull ceased fire and kicked all his treads into full-speed, intent on running Smoke down. Smoke was too quick, though; he leapt up onto the top near the brain and whipped out his chainsaw. There was a cranking and whirring, and the sound of metal being sawed. The control column with the brain-containing jar at the top was cut off at the stump by Smoke's chainsaw; the gunman neatly caught the brain in his hands. With a flick of his wrist, he yanked some dynamite out of his pack and dropped it on the ground before leaping off the tank-like mech.

Still holding the brain like a football, he charged away and leapt into a barrel roll on the ground as the mech exploded in a spectacular shower of sparks, flames, and steam.

Smoke smirked cockily at the jar in his hand, still containing the gurgling brain.

"Well, you know what this makes you, Doc?" He yawned, cocking his shotgun.

… One boom later, there was one less evil asshole in the world.

* * *

"Let go of me!" Blackfire screeched, squirming. Her hands were cuffed and encased in some sort of metal that prevented her from firing off blackbolts. A large metal band was strapped around her eyes like a blindfold so that the blackbeams from her eyes did no good.

Starfire was restrained in much the same way. Both of them were being roughly dragged by the Centauri officers towards a large glowing structure resembling an old-fashioned guillotine, except with a shimmering plasma blade instead of a metal one… and it also head two head-sockets instead of one…

They forced the pair into the devices and both grabbed long levers that operated the machine. They began counting down from ten…

"Sister… if we do not live through this, I… I just want to say… I'm glad we finally reconciled." Star sniffed.

"A-and… and I'm s-sorry… sorry for everything I've ever done to you, to anyone…" Blackfire moaned, holding back tears

They both tensed up as the officers hit the number one, preparing to be beheaded simultaneously.

Then, just as the spacemen started to say the number 'zero', Starfire was freed from her bonds by a well-placed birdirang. Moments later, a couple of gunshots rang out as Blackfire was blasted free from her restraints.

Both aliens looked off towards the source dumbstruck; this was… a big mistake. Because moments later, Star and Black reached up simultaneously and grabbed them, blasting them with several energy shots and tossing them about.

Star threw one into the air, where he was promptly blown apart when Robin threw a small hand grenade. Blackfire spun hers around and tossed him over to Smoke who blasted him point-blank with his shotgun, leaving a torso-less pair of legs that smoked from its charred waist…

"You found us!" Star said, stretching and enjoying having the bonds off.

"Yeah. And we took out Slade." Robin said.

"And Myntull, too." Smoke added with a nod.

Robin motioned to the exit with his hand. "C'mon… the others are still in trouble, we have to go!"

* * *

"We're not gonna win this…" Cy groaned, on his knees and heavily damaged.

"We… have to." Raven whispered hoarsely; she was clutching a wounded side that was bleeding slightly.

Terra was leaning against a crate, panting heavily and Beast Boy crouched in front of her with a gash on his shoulder.

"We have to fight. We have to win!" B.B. said fiercely.

"We can't…" Terra moaned, clutching her head.

A line of enemies, orcs from the left and Slade bots from the right, advanced on them slowly and menacingly, cocking their weapons and grunting….

… Until the Slade bots were knocked apart by a pair of flying boomerangs and the orcs were mowed down by a stream of bullets. The Titans looked up, dumbfounded at the sudden surprise attack on their behalf. Their eyes suddenly widened.

"Somebody asked for reinforcements?" Smoke asked, twirling a smoking revolver.

"You got it." Robin said, brandishing his staff and catching the boomerangs.

The remaining baddies that hadn't been beaten started to retreat towards a large pair of double doors… until a massive fist punched through, grabbed them, and pulled them in. A moment later, they shot back out frozen and shattered on the ground.

Out from the doorway stepped an unlikely combination of figures…

"Sub-Zero!" Robin yelled

"Jinx!" Raven cried.

"Gizmo!" Cyborg bellowed, shocked.

"Mammoth!" Beast Boy and Terra shouted in unison.

"**BUBBA**! _RUNT_!" Smoke screamed, delighted.

_**About Thirty Minutes Later…**_

"Wait… so they're on our side now?" Raven muttered skeptically, cocking an eyebrow.

"I don't see why not!" Zero snapped. "They saved my life!"

"And besides, I love these guys!" Smoke laughed, clapping Mammoth on the back. "How've you been, big 'un? I haven't seen you since the monster truck rally!"

"Uh…" Mammoth and Gizmo were a little to rattled by recent events to speak with much coherency… can you blame them? Finding out you've been mind-controlled, and almost killed your best friend whom you thought was already dead but wasn't because your school principal is a megalomaniac who's lied to you… trippy stuff, man.

"Well… I guess they can stay at the Tower." Robin grumbled. "But remember: I'm watching you…"

Jinx rolled her eyes. "Don't let him scare you guys. He's just full of hot air." Robin huffed and walked over to Starfire.

"So…" Jinx sidled up to Sub-Zero. "Glad this is all over…?"

"You know it." He responded tiredly. "… God knows I need some sleep."

"Oh, I don't know about that… I'm trying to decide how much sleeping I'm going to let you do when we get back to the tower…" She purred sultrily.

He smiled back into her eyes and kissed her fully on the lips… and behind them, Gizmo and Mammoth gagged simultaneously.

"J-jinx! You… and… and him? You're…?"

"Of course… didn't I tell you that?"

"You told us he was your friend!" Gizmo muttered crossly. "You didn't say anything about… ugh!"

Meanwhile, Smoke was flirting with Blackfire. "Oh c'mon, admit it… you were a little scared…"

"I wasn't scared!" Blackfire snapped. "I was just… just…" She huffed and went silent.

"Well… if you weren't…." Smoke paused. "… I was."

She looked at him. "Huh?"

"I thought for a minute I'd lose you. If Robin and me had just been a bit later…"

"Don't think about that. Just be glad we're both safe and sound."

After a long conversation, Robin sighed and turned to the others. "Well… I don't know how we're gonna squeeze Mammoth in the T-Car, but… I guess we should head home." He said with a smile.

It was the most uncomfortable ride they'd ever experienced.

_**THE END**_


End file.
